Who is Instagram sensation 'Arab Girl with Sign' and what is she trying to say?

The woman behind the Instagram handle has quite a few messages to send

Arab Girl With Sign is an Instagram handle created in January 2020. Instagram / arabgirlwithsign

We’ve all heard about “Dude With Sign”, the New Yorker who became famous over the last few months for uploading pictures of himself “protesting” the most bizarre issues on Instagram. Placed against otherwise humdrum, everyday backgrounds, the signs make it clear that he believes guacamole should be free, people should stop standing when the plane just lands and TikToks should be kept on TikTok

Well, Dude With Sign, or Seth,isn't the only person with something to say on Instagram. January saw another interesting account pop up, and the Arab Girl With Sign, has certainly captured the Internet's attention with her relatable, humorous content. Although the handle has only 21 posts so far, it has already gained more than 7,000 followers.

So, who exactly is Arab Girl With Sign? Well, she's disclosed that she's Palestinian Lebanese, and who grew up in Jordan and studied fashion marketing in London. She started the account after following Dude With Sign and wanted to share an honest insight on what it is like to be an Arab woman while using humour to get the point across.

"I created the account with my friends," the woman, who would like to remain anonymous, told The National. "I told them the concept and we started brainstorming ideas. When I can't think of a new sign, I go to my mother or friends with topics and we start throwing ideas around. My mum takes most of my pictures."

The posts are sometimes random, and sometimes send a strong message, but always have a dash of humour. Arabic phrases and words also feature in the posts.

“I’m very happy that this account created a community of Arabs from all over the region. And that brought like-minded people together,” she says. “I want to use the platform to push boundaries and talk about topics that might be 3aib (taboo) so the signs are only going to get more real.”

She’s been posting images of signs every two days, on average, but she still has quite a few more messages to send. Including one specifically for fans of her work: “It’s never too late to start something. If you have an idea, go for it because you never know what can come out of it and you wouldn’t have to wonder ‘what if’.”

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