On January 30 2019, Facebook page “The Blacksphere” shared the following meme, purportedly depicting a Virginia principal named Mamasai Mamakusa:

The meme was likely outrage-bait which implied that the nonexistent principal’s hijab constituted a form of religious expression, one she supposedly deemed acceptable for herself but not Christian students. Text added to what appeared to be a stock image of a woman in a hijab read:

THIS IS MAMASAI MAMAKUSA, A SCHOOL PRINCIPAL IN RICHMOND, VA

SHE HAS EXPELLED 2 KIDS FOR WEARING A CRUCIFIX AROUND THEIR NECKS SAYING, “THERE IS NO PLACE FOR RELIGION AT A SCHOOL”

The first clue that the meme was not on the up-and-up was the fact that it was very clearly a stock image, and not one taken from a news story about a specific incident in Richmond, Virginia. The second was arguably more subtle, but still noticeable. Mamasai Mamakusa was the purported name of the depicted woman, and was also easily recognizable as a lyric of sorts from the Michael Jackson song “Wanna Be Startin’ Something”:

[Outro]

Help me sing it

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

Help me sing it babe

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

Sing it to the world, sing it out loud

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

Mama-say, mama-sa, ma-ma-ko-ssa

However, the most telling aspect of the Mamasai Mamakusa meme was its origin, a July 2018 post on a satirical Facebook page called “America’s Last Line of Defense.”