The origins of the Guy Fawkes mask, now a protest symbol, will be celebrated today
LANA LAMlana.lam@scmp.com
PUBLISHED : Thursday, 05 November, 2015, 12:01am
UPDATED : Thursday, 05 November, 2015, 2:47am
Pro-democracy protesters wearing Guy Fawkes masks walk past policemen on an occupied road in Mong Kok on Guy Fawkes Night last year. Photo: Reuters
It's become a must-have wardrobe item for many anti-establishment protesters - including those in Hong Kong - and today, its origins will be celebrated across Britain with events as explosive as anarchy itself.
The Guy Fawkes mask has, in recent years, come to encapsulate a passion for protest and anger at the status quo.
But the origins of Guy Fawkes Day, also known as Bonfire or Fireworks Night, go back more than 400 years to a foiled attempt by Catholics to overthrow the Protestant king by blowing up the Houses of Parliament in 1605.
In Hong Kong, exactly a year ago tonight, about 50 protesters wearing Guy Fawkes masks created eye-catching scenes at the Occupy protest site in Admiralty, while another 100 sporting the mask occupied streets in Mong Kok.
Police display material including Guy Fawkes masks seized in raids in June. Photo: David Wong
Earlier this year in June, police seized several Guy Fawkes masks after 10 people were arrested for allegedly planning bomb attacks in Wan Chai and Admiralty during the Legislative Council debate on political reform. The porcelain-white mask with its rosy cheeks and devilish grin was first popularised in the 2006 dystopian movie V for Vendetta, which was inspired by a 1988 graphic novel written by Alan Moore.
In September 2011, anti-capitalist protesters from the Occupy Wall Street movement in New York adopted the mask, giving rise to its relevance to a new generation of disenchanted youths. In October 2011, Hong Kong protesters, in solidarity with the Occupy cause, also wore the masks.
An Occupy Wall Street protester wearing a Guy Fawkes mask in New York. Photo: Reuters
Hacker group Anonymous has also appropriated the visage, and tonight, thousands of their supporters in London are expected to gather in Trafalgar Square and Westminster.
There are hundreds of events to mark Guy Fawkes Day in Britain, with areas in London hosting evening fireworks displays from tonight to Sunday evening.
An anti-corporate protester wearing a Guy Fawkes mask stands next to protest tents outside St Paul's Cathedral in London in 2011. Photo: AP
In Hong Kong, the mask has been adopted by radicals and revellers alike.
"The mask is very popular during Halloween so we sold a lot last week," said staff yesterday at Matteo Party, a fancy dress shop in Causeway Bay. "It's quite a classic character."
http://m.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1875740/400-years-and-still-fomenting-revolution-guy-fawkes-now
