Melania Trump has received major viral attention online by Ukrainians thrilled with her toasting what they believe is support for their country. This surprising praise is due to her strikingly different opinions than those of her husband, the former President Donald Trump. Their diametric joint reaction to the continuing invasion of Ukraine underscores this schism. Melania Trump, a native of Slovenia and once a young model in the former Yugoslavia, has recently been transformed into a cultural meme supernova. Now people are already starting to call her “Sister Melania of the Bene Gesserit,” referring to the potent sisterhood in Frank Herbert’s sci-fi classic, Dune.
It’s a rare situation that has pushed Ukraine-born Melania Trump to speak up in public against her husband. Following Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, she appealed to her social media followers to donate to the Red Cross, emphasizing the dire humanitarian crisis. She described the situation as “heartbreaking and horrific to see innocent people suffering.” This is a remarkable departure from her husband’s statements from just a few days before. He insisted on calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a dictator.
Memes like these of Melania Trump have flooded social media in recent weeks, depicting the former First Lady’s unexpected transformation into a social media symbol of support for Ukraine. One of these memes features her in a smart-looking blazer with the Ukrainian trident emblem, jokingly dubbed “Agent Melania Trumpenko.” In one of the most circulated photos of her, she is seen standing behind Donald Trump’s imposing figure in the Oval Office. He is currently preoccupied with signing a bad presidential decree. In this depiction, her face covered in shadow from a big hat, we can only assume she’s a spy working inside the White House.
These memes have helped transform Melania Trump into an icon for Western populist politicians and celebrities. Second, they welcome all expressions of solidarity with Ukraine—in her beautiful image. In one of these memes, the animals are giving her a green hat with a big Ukrainian flag on top. In another photo, three mannequins in war helmets stand beside a life-sized Melania Trump. The playful nature of these depictions emphasizes the difference between her and her husband’s political alignments.
What’s even more interesting is that, according to Donald Trump himself, Melania influenced the president’s change of heart on Russia. Yet his previous statements on Putin show that’s far from the full story. Those are things he has said and done, but my conversations with him [Putin] have always been very pleasant. Aren’t you impressed at the beauty of that discussion? And then the missiles hit that night,” he said, portraying with that statement a complicated relationship with the Russian leader.