By Reg Zehner

In the land of Lebron James, there have been various TikTok videos of strange alien sightings ending with the video renaming the state as “Oooohio,” along with tweets reflecting beautiful paradises but labeled as Columbus, or Cleveland, Ohio. Ohio memes are a distinct internet phenomena that have persevered the landscape of meme culture since 2016. Today, Ohio memes have accumulated to the point that the word Ohio itself has a new meme definition: whenever something is so unusual, or bizarre, that is Ohio. Even considering prominent US cities such as New York and LA, somehow Ohio is at the same level of relevance. No matter the meme format, Ohio is used as the “third” or “alternative” option when comparing US meme geographies; only being referred to as the state and less so as the cities that inhabit it. 

And maybe Ohio memes and Ohio itself have remained in the cultural production for so long because they tap into the quintessential existence of American life outside of the coastal or expected hegemonic norms. Norms that, more often than not, are praised for relating to the late-capitalist machine. Don’t get me wrong, Ohio is weird IRL. For example, the state’s quirks  can be seen in our ‘Hell is Real’ sign, giant corn, a building built like a basket, or the many, many, strange sightings of random shit happening, like a raccoon driving a car in Cleveland. However, online, Ohio’s presence transcends its physical geographical connections and is built from the shared effect of the location. 

Needless to say, as an Ohio meme enjoyer and participant, most Ohio memes are interesting because of the comments or conversations surrounding them. Whether from Ohioans or non-Ohioans, the interest or hatred unveils somehow that this place matters, especially during a time when everything and nothing matters at all. Without the memes, one could say Ohio could exist very similarly to Fresno (sorry)—which is to say—overlooked and mainly forgotten. At the end of the day, Ohio has main character energy and even the internet has never looked back.

This essay was first published in the zine E-Merge: Artistic Intersections of the Black Midwest, created for WITH(IN).DIGITAL’s inaugural in-person event that occurred October 2024 in Cleveland, Ohio. Learn more about E-Merge here.