Josh fight
Date
  • April 24, 2021 (2021-04-24) (first event)
  • May 21, 2022 (2022-05-21)
Venue
  • Air Park, Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. (2021)
  • Bowling Lake Park, Lincoln, Nebraska, U.S. (2022)
Organized byJosh Swain
Participants
  • 900+ (2021)
  • 200+ (2022)

The Josh fight was a viral Internet meme, mock fight, and charity fundraiser at Air Park in Lincoln, Nebraska, on April 24, 2021, with a second edition of the event occurring at Bowling Lake Park in Lincoln on May 21, 2022.

The event was originally conceived by a civil engineering student named Josh Swain from Tucson, Arizona, on April 24, 2020, due to boredom during COVID-19 lockdowns. It gained popularity after a screenshot of a Facebook Messenger group chat involving several users named Josh Swain spread widely on the Internet.

Swain encouraged participants of the chat to meet at a set of coordinates one year hence and fight for the right to use the name "Josh". The event, though initially intended as a joke, drew a crowd of nearly a thousand on the day of the event. The gathering was lighthearted and there was no actual violence involved. The Wall Street Journal wrote that the event became a "global news phenomenon,"[1] while a technology writer for The Guardian called it "perhaps the ultimate response to an online Doppelgänger."[2]

Background

On April 24, 2020, several Facebook Messenger users named Josh Swain were added to a group chat that read,

– You're probably wondering why I've gathered you all here today

– Because we all share the same names....?

– Precisely, 4/24/2021, 12:00 PM, meet at these coordinates, (40°49′20″N 96°47′54″W / 40.8223286°N 96.7982002°W / 40.8223286; -96.7982002) we fight, whoever wins gets to keep the name, everyone else has to change their name, you have a year to prepare, good luck

joshua swain Twitter
@joshswainaz

there can only be one https://pic.twitter.com/VPamxjJ0yL

April 24, 2020[3]

Swain explained the idea for the event was conceived out of boredom from the COVID-19 lockdowns. Swain had often experienced the frustration of being unable to receive an exclusive handle on social media because of other Josh Swains.[4][5] He posted a screenshot of the conversation on Twitter the same day. The tweet received over 64,000 likes and 21,000 retweets within two weeks, surprising Swain.[4][5][3]

Although Swain said the tweet was "entirely a joke," the conversation became a meme on social media.[6][7] Days before the event, Swain took to Reddit in order to announce a fundraiser for the event to benefit the Children's Hospital & Medical Center (CH&MC) Foundation in Omaha, along with a request for non-perishables to start a food drive for the Food Bank of Lincoln.[4][6][8] In the same post, Swain encouraged attendees to bring pool noodles as mock weapons for the planned fight.[9]

Swain had selected Lincoln, Nebraska as a site for the event due to its central location within the United States; the original randomly picked coordinates were located in a field on private property. The field's owner, however, did not agree to host "such a ridiculous event,"[10] and as such the fight was relocated to Air Park, approximately 2.6 miles (4.2 km) away.[11][12]

Event

On the chosen day, nearly a thousand people, including at least 50 named Josh, congregated at Air Park.[4][13][14] Attendees came from as far as New York, Washington, and Texas, with some dressed in superhero and Star Wars costumes.[15][16][17] Three "fights" were held—one game of rock paper scissors for those named Josh Swain, a second with pool noodles for all attendees named Josh, and a third and final all-in battle for anyone in possession of a pool noodle willing to participate.[10][18]

Only two of the individuals in attendance were named "Josh Swain"—Josh Swain, the event's creator, beat a rival 38-year-old Josh Swain from Omaha in the rock paper scissors event.[1][13][19] A local five-year-old boy named Josh Vinson Jr., dubbed "Little Josh," who had been treated at the CH&MC for seizures when he was two years old, was declared the overall winner. Vinson Jr. was crowned with a paper coronet from Burger King as well as a replica AEW World Championship belt.[12][19][20] Vinson Jr.'s father, Josh Vinson Sr., said afterward that his son "had the time of his life."[1]

The gathering raised US$14,355 for the Children's Hospital & Medical Center Foundation—far past its initial goal of US$1,000—and collected over 200 pounds (90 kg) of food for the nearby food bank.[4][21] The CH&MC has since shown appreciation for the fundraiser on social media.[22] On May 6, 2021, Josh Cellars, a Californian winery, decided to triple the donation by donating $30,000 to the CH&MC.[23] The Wall Street Journal wrote that the event became a "global news phenomenon."[1]

The next year, a second edition of the event was held on May 21, 2022, at Bowling Lake Park.[24][25] The anniversary event was organized by the Arizonan Swain, with donations once again going to the CH&MC.[26][27] Around 200 people attended the event, including at least 20 people being named Josh. The redux raised US$20,576, with Josh Cellars agreeing to double the donation.[28] According to The Wall Street Journal, Swain would like to have the Josh fight occur annually, but said "he's not sure if he'll be able to keep it up."[29]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Gay, Jason (April 26, 2021). "The Day People Named Josh Fought in Nebraska". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Archived from the original on April 27, 2021. Retrieved April 27, 2021.
  2. ↑ Hepworth, Shelley (February 25, 2022). "My inbox is piling up with spam again and my email doppelgänger is to blame". the Guardian. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  3. 1 2 Swain, Joshua [@joshswainaz] (April 24, 2020). "there can only be one https://t.co/VPamxjJ0yL" (Tweet). Archived from the original on September 2, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2022 – via Twitter.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Paybarah, Azi (April 26, 2021). "Josh Is the Name, and They Will Fight You for It". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  5. 1 2 Pellot, Emerald (April 20, 2021). "What is the Josh fight? Social media users are preparing for an epic battle". In The Know. Archived from the original on April 22, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  6. 1 2 Vlamis, Kelsey. "Hundreds of people named Josh met up in Lincoln, Nebraska, to battle with pool noodles over their shared name, videos show". Insider. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  7. ↑ Weiner, Chloee (April 25, 2021). "There Can Only Be One: Battle Of The Joshes Brings Hundreds To Nebraska". NPR.org. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  8. ↑ Page, Sydney (April 27, 2021). "'Josh Fight' began online a year ago. Last weekend, a crowd of people named Josh showed up to duel with pool noodles". Washington Post. Archived from the original on April 28, 2021. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  9. ↑ Swain, Josh (April 21, 2021). "IMPORTANT: I am Josh Swain, and here are the official details of the event. See you soon". Reddit. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  10. 1 2 Hammack, Zach (April 22, 2021). "Calling all Josh Swains: The battle for your name is taking place right here in Lincoln". Lincoln Journal Star. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  11. ↑ Springman, Ashley (April 24, 2021). "VIDEO: Viral event 'Josh Fight' chooses Lincoln as its battleground". KLKN-TV. Archived from the original on April 21, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  12. 1 2 Best, Paul (April 24, 2021). "Nebraska Josh fight: Horde of dudes named Josh fight for right to name". Fox News. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  13. 1 2 "Hundreds show up in Nebraska for fight over name Josh". Associated Press. April 24, 2021. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  14. ↑ Raphael, Shannon (April 24, 2021). "Remember that Viral "Joshua Fight" Meme? It Actually Happened, and It Was Epic". Distractify. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Josh fight: Crowds show up in US park for pool noodle battle to win rightful ownership of their name". Sky News. Archived from the original on April 25, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  16. ↑ Viral pool noodle brawl started as a 'pandemic boredom' joke (Video). CNN. April 25, 2021. Retrieved September 7, 2021.
  17. ↑ Cohen, Kelly (April 25, 2021). "The #JoshFight is over, all hail 'Little Josh' and his pool noodle skills". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on April 26, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  18. ↑ Saxena, Akanksha. "Ultimate 'Josh' Fight: Hundreds of men named 'Josh' come to Nebraska to fight over their name". www.timesnownews.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  19. 1 2 Seline, Libby (April 24, 2021). "'Little Josh' dubbed winner of the Battle of the Joshes; community also benefits from event". Lincoln Journal-Star. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  20. ↑ Nambiar, Prerna (April 25, 2021). "Who won the Josh fight? Here's what happened at the event!". HITC. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  21. ↑ Evans, Greg (April 25, 2021). "4-year-old boy triumphs of hundreds of man with same name in first-ever 'Josh Fight'". www.indy100.com. Archived from the original on May 7, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
  22. ↑ Children's [@ChildrensOmaha] (April 24, 2021). "#JoshFight is trending, and we are the lucky recipients of this viral fundraising event! So far, the Joshes have raised $8,000! So awesome! 🙌 https://t.co/oFJS7B3SKh" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 9, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2022 – via Twitter.
  23. ↑ "#JoshFight fundraiser tripled thanks to 'Josh' inspired business". KLKN-TV. May 6, 2021. Archived from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved May 7, 2021.
  24. ↑ Swain, Josh (May 22, 2022). "Josh Fight 2022 | thejoshfight.com". Josh Fight 2022. Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  25. ↑ Jessie | [@jjessirose] (April 22, 2021). "IMPORTANT: The Josh Swain fight location has CHANGED. Here are more updates! #joshswain #joshfight #joshswainbattle https://t.co/s7XP0eeymC" (Tweet). Retrieved September 29, 2022 – via Twitter.
  26. ↑ Hammack, Zach. "Watch now: A year after winning viral Josh Fight, Little Josh ready to defend his (Burger King) crown". JournalStar.com. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  27. ↑ "Josh Fight 2022 Fundraiser for Children's Omaha/NE | Mightycause". Mightycause. May 22, 2022. Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  28. ↑ Swain, Joshua [@joshswainaz] (May 22, 2022). "Thanks so much to the people of Lincoln for another incredible Josh Fight! The fundraiser for @childrensomaha is still open for the next 24 hours and will be DOUBLED by our amazing friends at @joshcellars link in bio! https://t.co/0F7nHD0w5B" (Tweet). Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved September 29, 2022 – via Twitter.
  29. ↑ "Pool noodle fight over the name Josh again attracts hundreds". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
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