Throughout her husband's campaign to be president of the United States, Melania Trump has been the subject of a lot of internet scrutiny.
Her appearances at events in support of her husband have resulted in hashtags and memes. After she was accused of plagiarizing a Michelle Obama speech for her appearance at the Republican National Convention, the hashtag #FamousMelaniaTrumpQuotes trended on Twitter.
"Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!" #FamousMelaniaTrumpQuotes
After her husband's election victory, she was the subject of online shaming after old modelling photos were shared on social media.
This is our new First Lady. 😕
After this, a video cut to make it seem like she had interrupted CNN's Anderson Cooper by saying "hello" became a meme. The original video appears to have since been deleted.
when someone speaks without my permission
The meme seemed to make fun of her speech patterns, specifically the way she says "hello" and repetition of the phrase "he's kind."
i screamed when i saw which magazine it was
Soon a number of fan accounts for musicians like Lana Del Rey and Britney Spears began including Melania Trump in their tweets and memes.
Beyonce has died
Some of the accounts made joking comparisons between those pop stars and Mrs. Trump.
Can you believe Lana Del Rey finally fucked her way to the top
BuzzFeed News reached out to two accounts responsible for many of the memes created. @ULTRAVlOLENCE — a teenager from Germany — told us that they began stanning Melania Trump because she embodies the sugar baby lifestyle.
"I think that people are stanning her because I think many of us want to be like her (because of her sugar daddy and the money) and her 'stupidity' is funny," they said. "I posted more memes because I think it may be easier for people to accept her as the new first lady."
Lana: get a sugar daddy and i'll release LDR4 Me:
@ULTRAVlOLENCE said one particular meme explains their feelings toward Trump.
When you just wanted a Sugar Daddy and you end up FLOTUS. #SugarBaby #WhiteHouse #FLOTUS #Trump2017 #Goals #BAE… https://t.co/O4074UzRsM
@FaucetMcDaniel, a 20-year-old from Fort Lauderdale, told BuzzFeed News he is drawn to glamorous celebrities and began supporting Trump after he saw her being shamed online.
Me tryna figure out why people hate melania. Must be jealousy xx
Both users said they separate stanning Trump from support of her husband "She seems very genuine and sweet," said @FaucetMcDaniel. "She just slays."
⚠️this is a Melania Trump safe space no prejudice allowed⚠️ https://t.co/tlZR9J5DTm
Other Twitter users BuzzFeed News spoke to said that they simply find Melania Trump funny.
*someone mentions lgbt*
"We're just joking with Melania because it's funny," said @burgerpaulson.
Stan or not, the accounts have been hugely influential in spreading memes about her, which have also been adopted by other fandoms, such as K-pop.
jisoo when she tries to join in on the rest of #BLACKPINK members when they are conversing in English
When asked whether their support of Melania Trump would remain throughout her husband's presidency, @FaucetMcDaniel said for them it would, while @ULTRAVlOLENCE said that they will probably post less over time.
I recruited my friends into the Melania Army ⚠ Helllooo @ULTRAVlOLENCE