I Know What You Are memes feature Whitney Chewston—aka the homophobic dog—a miniature white dachshund whose catchphrases are associated with the LGBTQ community.
‘I Know What You Are’ meme origins
Whitney Chewston is the star of a series of memes that poke fun at, judge, and comment on general discourse about the LGBTQ community, both by those belonging to it and those not.
One of Whitney Chewston’s photos was first adorned with the phrase ‘I Know What You Are’ in 2022 by a since-deleted Tumblr user. In the image, the dog stares straight at the camera, which is poised at eye level. Her little stare is used to imply that she is aware whoever she’s looking at is LGTBQ. It wasn’t long until it spread, not only on Tumblr but to Instagram and Twitter as well.
The meme has come to be used to insinuate someone — usually a television or movie character — is gay, even if their sexual orientation isn’t addressed or hinted at. The meme is also sometimes altered to make a strong insinuation about other groups, in different contexts.
Meme examples
More dog memes:
- The longevity of Doge, the Shiba Inu meme that is still such popular
- The ‘let me do it for you’ meme, born from heartbreak
- ‘Horny jail’ was one of the first pandemic memes
- Remembering Cheems, the doge who just wanted a cheemsburbger
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