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Hoteps are members of anAfrican American subculture that usesancient Egyptian history as a source ofBlack pride.[1] They have been described as promotingpseudohistory[2] and misinformation aboutAfrican-American history.[1] Hoteps espouse a mixture ofBlack radicalism andsocial conservatism.[3][better source needed] Notable people who have promoted hotep ideas, or have been described as part of hotep subculture, includeKanye West,[4][5]Kyrie Irving,[4][5] andUmar Johnson.[3]
The term "hotep" was originally used amongAfrocentrists as a greeting, similar to "I come in peace",[6] but by the mid-2010s had come to be used disparagingly to "describe a person who's either a clueless parody of Afrocentricity" or "someone who's loudly, conspicuously and obnoxiously pro-black butanti-progress".[a][7][6]
One of their more recognizable beliefs usesmodern American racial and ethnic constructs to define the civilization ofancient Egypt, asserting that it was racially homogeneous and uniformly made up of a single ethnic group ofBlack people. This belief stands at odds with the mainstream and scholarly understanding that ancient Egypt was a diverse civilization consisting of people of various skin tones and backgrounds, including those who were indigenous to theNile Valley and those who came from thesurrounding deserts and regions, such asLibyans,Nubians,Greeks, andArabs, to name a few.[8][9]
Hoteps espouse a mixture ofblack radicalism andsocial conservatism,[3] often through generating social media content on sites such as Twitter and Instagram.[1] Members of thesubculture promoteconspiracy theories,[1][7] often throughinternet memes,[1] as well as inaccurate historical claims.[1] Hoteps often denounce homosexuality and interracial marriage,[1] promote the view that Black women should be subordinate to Black men,[1] andoppose LGBT rights andfeminism, which they view as inimical toBlack liberation.[10] A substantial number of hoteps promoteantisemitic conspiracy theories.[2][4] Commentator Matthew Sheffield wrote in 2018 that "a significant portion of self-identified hoteps have so much in common withfar-rightwhite nationalism" that the subculture "has been dubbed the 'ankh right' by some of its black critics" (a play on the term "alt-right").[2]
While they are often identified as practicing a form of Afrocentrism,Molefi Kete Asante argues that hoteps lack a grasp of Afrocentric academic theory and philosophy and thus cannot be termed Afrocentric.[11]
In the 1930s, hotep ideology originated in the Islam-inspired teachings ofWallace Fard Muhammad, a door-to-door salesman and founder of the Americanblack nationalist organizationNation of Islam.[4] Claiming he was the incarnation ofNoble Drew Ali, Muhammad "borrowed from traditional Islamic behavioral practices" to create "a myth designed especially to appeal to African Americans".[4] Prominent members includedMalcolm X andElijah Muhammad.[12]
Although its members are not always called "hoteps", the community originated in response to early 20th-centuryEgyptomania within the American black community[1] as well as in response to the emergence of Afrocentrism following thecivil rights movement (with a later resurgence in the 1980s and 1990s).[6]
In 2018, theNetflix seriesDear White People featured a hotep antagonist, Trevor, played byShamier Anderson.[10]
In 2019, comedianRobin Thede portrayed a recurring hotep character on multiple segments ofA Black Lady Sketch Show.[13][5]
Critics have argued that hotep beliefs are too narrow-minded (they only focus onAncient Egypt, as opposed toSub-Saharan Africa and other aspects of African history).[14]Black feminists argue that hoteps perpetuatepatriarchy andrape culture by policing women's sexuality and tolerating predatory black men.[10]
Anthropologist Miranda Lovett, writing in the online magazineSapiens, critiqued Hotep-promoted internet memes that "juxtapose incongruous elements of African culture and contemporary life" and present Black women as "Nubian queens" or "mothers of civilization" who "are expected to serve primarily as support to their Black husbands".[1] Lovett argues: "The Hoteps movement is a testament to the uniquely painful and complicated history of African Americans. It is anchored in a long tradition of looking to Africa for points of needed pride. Yet it also risks propagating false histories and conventions, and, ironically, disparaging Black women and those who are LGBTQ in the service of elevating Black identity."[1]
Notable people who have promoted hotep ideas, or have been described as part of hotep subculture, includeKanye West,[4][5]Kyrie Irving,[4][5] andUmar Johnson.[3]