Viral
Breanna Robinson
Dec 09, 2021
The catchphrase “We Used To Be A Country. A Proper Country” has made waves on social media.
But if you are unfamiliar with where it stemmed from, you’ve come to the right place.
The phrase originated from a Twitter post on December 2.
People were originally baffled by it, with some speculating that it had a pandemic-themed message and the tweeter was trying to show how much better life used to be in America without masks.
The account, @DarnelSugarfoo, posted the tweet that showed an image of an American 7-Eleven photographed in 1973 with the caption, “We used to be a country. A proper country.”
But people pointed out just how limited life was back then, with one pointing out that the woman in the image may have struggled to get a credit card in her own name due to misogyny, and the lack of racial diversity in the image.
A "7-Eleven" in 1973. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/OGoPh2mdh8— Rosie's Donuts for Dementia 🍩 (@Rosie's Donuts for Dementia 🍩) 1638428913
The first variants of the meme occurred within the replies of the original tweet, where Twitter users started pairing the catchphrase with other images depicting strange, nostalgic bits of American culture.
One parody meme, which was posted on December 4, showed a hot dog and jello cake mold cake that’s said to be from 1973.
A "7-Eleven" in 1973. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/OGoPh2mdh8— Rosie's Donuts for Dementia 🍩 (@Rosie's Donuts for Dementia 🍩) 1638428913
People on Twitter took it up a step further, sharing pictures of nostalgic shows, games, dolls, restaurants and more, further suggesting how the US used to be “a proper country.”
Here at Indy100, we rounded up 27 of the best memes that will help with a trip down memory lane.
Check them out below:
A McDonalds Gamecube kiosk. We used to be a country. A real country. https://t.co/30dky4WdNG— Schaffrillas (@Schaffrillas) 1638899371
We used to be a country. A proper country. #MACHeroine https://t.co/65M1knKo47— maccosmetics (@maccosmetics) 1638993613
A&W used to sell root beer, now RB. Auntie Anne's used to sell pretzel dog, now pretzel sausage. Because some peo… https://t.co/qOhSyYdfxz— Roman Akramovich (@Roman Akramovich) 1638856537
This is what cities used to look like. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/o9RjkM0lrs— juniper 🧊 (@juniper 🧊) 1638659349
we used to be a country. a proper country. https://t.co/eDks5zV3ju— SCOUT (@SCOUT) 1639044895
Back when it really didn’t matter what you wore to the reunion. 😩 #RHOA We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/NOl7o8uHDl— The Peach Report Daily™ (@The Peach Report Daily™) 1638985105
We used to be a proper country. https://t.co/DyxkX5BQwk— jaxie 🇸🇸 (@jaxie 🇸🇸) 1639008060
we used to be a country. a proper country. https://t.co/7kzkJNrBHF— ex girlfriend (@ex girlfriend) 1638997579
we used to be a country. a proper country. https://t.co/7kzkJNrBHF— ex girlfriend (@ex girlfriend) 1638997579
A Disney store in the 1990’s . We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/f5KVyQBZke— Jeff (@Jeff) 1638723098
A "7-Eleven" in 2018. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/CgnWcR71hy— hanna jvne (@hanna jvne) 1638587725
we used to be a country. a proper country https://t.co/lClR9Molzr— Mads²⁸ (@Mads²⁸) 1639008550
@fatnudes Wendy's sunrooms have practically disappeared! We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/eliPGDWeoA— Alex (@Alex) 1638671666
we used to be a country. a proper country. https://t.co/lGOfbdvqtG— Monster Reactions (@Monster Reactions) 1639056472
a combination pizza hut and taco bell we used to be a country. a proper country https://t.co/DGr0r6exWF— todd bonzalez (@todd bonzalez) 1638712864
A Little Caesars inside a KMart c.1994. We used to be a country. A real country. https://t.co/SMW5ZozuXo— AlternateHistoryHub (@AlternateHistoryHub) 1638666051
we used to be a real country. https://t.co/qjQhXTMt8p— lucy 🧟♀️ (@lucy 🧟♀️) 1638900932
A "Taco Bell" in 1983. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/b1352hpvt2— ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ɪ'ᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅ (@ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ɪ'ᴅ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛᴏ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅ) 1638601121
we used to be a proper country etc etc https://t.co/Sun3ZRvEgZ— kirk (@kirk) 1638925858
We used to be a country. A proper nation. https://t.co/BNCUruWzl7— it ain’t fun Paramore! (@it ain’t fun Paramore!) 1638894738
A playground built in 1973. We used to be a country. A proper country. https://t.co/kKOGC4kG9z— phage (@phage) 1638718932
@DarnelSugarfoo An American river during the late Cretaceous We used to be a country, a proper country https://t.co/GGJaCPatO0— Karl Ziktor's Iguana (@Karl Ziktor's Iguana) 1638640383
we used to be a country. a proper country. https://t.co/mtbBzAbeZz— Oriana Nichelle (@Oriana Nichelle) 1638920033
We used to be a country. A proper country. #SunnyFXX https://t.co/1mbP1L2ERH— It's Always Sunny (@It's Always Sunny) 1638925269
Top 100
The Conversation (0)
x