Following Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential elections, a new trend has emerged on social media platforms called the ‘MATGA movement’. The ‘Make Aqua Tofana Great Again’ or ‘MATGA’ movement hits out at Donald Trump’s popular ‘Make America Great Again’ (MAGA) slogan. In this movement, US women are filming murder-fantasy videos in which they lace men’s drinks with deadly poison. Notably, the movement is a nod to ancient killer Giulia Tofana – a 17th-century Italian woman who sold Aqua Tofana poison to women who wanted to murder their husbands because of violence at home.
According to Newsweek, social media videos related to this trend show young women smiling as they add unknown substances to drinks. Some clips also show women advertising poison rings that can be worn on fingers.
HOLY SH*T, Karens lost their fvcking minds over Trump’s win and launched MATGA—short for Make Aqua Tofana Great Again.
Aqua Tofana was a powerful poison in 17th-century Sicily, sold by women to other women seeking to escape abusive relationships by discreetly poisoning their… pic.twitter.com/KvHK8ZXWz4
— I Meme Therefore I Am 🇺🇸 (@ImMeme0) November 10, 2024
MATGA movement owes most of its development to Giulia Tofana. Her invention, the famous Aqua Tofana poison, was a deadly, undetectable poison used across Italy, gaining notoriety for its stealth and potency. The poison was typically concealed in everyday cosmetic containers, allowing unsuspecting husbands to remain oblivious to their approaching demise.
Therefore, the MATGA trend has become synonymous with Tofana. This movement comes after misogynistic phrases like “Your body, my choice” went viral online following Mr Trump’s presidential win with men messaging random women online threatening them that their bodies no longer belong to them. So, the MATGA movement seems to be in response to this rising misogynistic hate.
Some people online have framed this latest movement as a modern-day reminder of the long-standing fight for women’s rights. However, according to Newsweek, critics have argued that referring to a deadly poison, even in jest, can send the wrong message.
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One TikToker urged women who are taking part in “MATGA” to think about the consequences of poisoning people. “You do know those videos can be used against you, right? The internet is forever. Also, the 1600s were a lot different than 2024 advancements in detecting poison,” read the caption of one video.
Separately, Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene raised an alarm to the FBI and called for an investigation into the “public death threats”. “@FBI these are public death threats and must [be] investigated! These women are telling others how to poison and murder men because they are angry over the election. If you tracked down J6’ers (January 6 rioters), pro-lifers, parents angry at school boards, then you better go after these psychopaths!” Ms Greene said.