If you’ve stepped into the
More so on social media, forums, or even Google itself.
I started noticing it when I seen so many Quora questions about it.
Questions like this:
It’s mental ain’t it? The hate is real.
It’s the same thing in most places you look online.
Whether it’s:
- Steam
- or Twitter.
It’s almost as if it’s a universal hatred for
It’s like a sick obsession for something they apparently don’t like.
So why the hate for anime profile pictures?
The hate comes down to a lot of things. Some of it is public knowledge.
But it doesn’t always have any rhyme or reason to it.
Let’s take a look.
1. Prejudice
“Recently I have played CS:GO in competitive and every game I join there is at least one person who calls me and my friends who have
anime profile pictures weaboos. And posts really rude comments on profiles, I think it is really inappropriate and not fun.Why are people on the internet so negative towards
anime and people who like it?”
Prejudice is when you have a preconceived notion about someone or something.
In the case of
Here’s more.
“Is
anime for loser and weirdo?”
There are even Facebook and Twitter accounts dedicated to hating on people with
Along with memes posted targeting people who like
In these cases like I hinted before – they’re all projecting and there’s no logic or purpose to it. Other than to hate and feel better about themselves I suppose.
Related: 7 Outrageous Criticisms About Anime
2. Bad experiences
“I hate
anime profile pictures, almost all of the time they are the biggest d*ckheads ever.”
On the surface this seems like ranting. But there’s a reason to this one.
The person in question didn’t like the way they were treated by someone with an
And so they associate this experience with people who have
The interesting thing is how “anime profile picture” is thrown into the conversation.
This goes back to the prejudice comment in point #1. Being associated with
But in the end – a few bad apples causes people to irrationally judge you.
Relevant: Why The Coronavirus Has Made Anime More Popular Than Ever
3. Not knowing who’s behind the profile picture
“I guess for me it’s often a sign that they are far from what the icon represents. I’m not a fan of not knowing who someone is, and I’m even less of a fan of having my impressions shattered.”
This is something I’ve said before. A lot of people are judgemental, especially when they’re insecure.
If you have an
The person on Reddit who mentioned this isn’t a hater, but that’s usually the reasoning when someone is.
4. Hypocrisy
QUOTE:
“Anyone using an
anime profile pic is not doing so because of appreciation. They’re sending a message, intentional or not.That message is “I am hiding my appearance. My appearance is a deal-breaker, and I am well-aware of it. Rather than put forth any effort to improve myself, I choose to represent myself instead with animated characters indistinguishable from each other, and renowned for being associated with fans with unpleasant, awkward, and antisocial behavior.”
Before you facepalm yourself, keep in mind this is coming from an anonymous Reddit account.
Or put another way: an account behind a platform that favors privacy.
The hate for
And it somehow doesn’t apply to people who are already anonymous when making these claims.
“Did someone hack your account Elon? You seem to have an
anime profile picture now. RU OK????? XD.”
Back when Elon Musk changed his profile picture to Edward Elric in 2019, hypocritical comments popped up everywhere.
All of a sudden it’s “confusing” and “doesn’t make sense” because the person they admire destroyed their preconceptions. And they don’t know how to respond.
The benefit of the doubt was given based on what they conjured up in their own minds. But never when the person in question isn’t famous.
Relevant: The BEST List Of Rappers Who Like Anime
5. Because “online dating”

The long and short of it is: this guy spoke to a girl on Facebook with an
He thought she was:
- Cute
- Funny
- Smart
And that lovey dovey talk we all go through when we’re into someone.
Turns out when he met this girl he was disappointed from a beauty point of view.
And so – he’s blaming
The reality is people with REAL pictures don’t turn out to be what you thought as well. I’ve met enough girls to know it.
Anime is just an excuse to justify your disappointment. Let’s call bullsh*t when we see it.
Why defend anime profile pictures?
That’s simple. I’m willing to speak for people who don’t have a voice and are on the receiving end of the abuse or hate.
And no one else is speaking on it, so I’ll gladly be the one to do it.
Yes – there are a portion of people who hide behind
And yes – there are even people (culture vultures) who use
But that’s never the majority, and it shouldn’t be treated like that.
Especially not because you’ve dealt with 20 out of millions of people, and are now judging millions based on those 20.
Let’s do better than that.
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Recommended:
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