The 'Pandemic Amnesty' meme originated from an October 2022 article in The Atlantic titled 'Let’s Declare a Pandemic Amnesty,' written by economist Emily Oster. The piece suggested that society should forgive and forget the mistakes, misinformation, and heated conflicts that occurred during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. This proposal immediately backfired on social media, sparking a massive wave of memes where users expressed their refusal to move on without accountability. The template is now widely used to mock the idea of 'forgiving' public figures or policies, often pairing the original headline with skeptical reactions, historical grievances, or outright refusals.