Over the past month, patriot rallies have filled the streets of major cities in Australia and the UK. The crowds waved Australian and British flags — and even a smattering of Israeli flags — as they called for patriotism, stronger borders, and policies that safeguard national cohesion.
Critics have been quick to dismiss these rallies as the work of “the far-right,” pointing to the presence of a handful of provocateurs and extremists as proof of a broader threat. That framing is convenient for governments and media outlets eager to sidestep the real issue: a growing public backlash against the radical left and Islamist movements that have dominated Western streets for nearly two years.
October 7 and the Realignment of the West
This wave of patriotic protest is not happening in a vacuum. As we approach the second anniversary of the October 7 Hamas massacre — the deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Holocaust — we are reminded that these rallies are about much more than immigration policy.
The October 7 attacks revealed a deep divide within Western societies. Instead of uniting to condemn the slaughter of 1,200 Israelis and the kidnapping of hundreds more, the radical left partnered with pro-Islamist activists to flood Western capitals with marches that blamed Israel and excused terror. These groups did not simply chant for “ceasefire” — they burned flags, threatened Jewish communities, and openly called for the end of Israel.
For many in the silent majority, enough was enough. Patriot rallies are, in many ways, the public’s way of saying: we reject the moral inversion that paints terrorists as victims and their victims as villains.
The False Far-Right Narrative
Yes, extremists sometimes appear at these rallies. But to define entire movements by their fringes is intellectually dishonest. It is no different from blaming all Palestinian solidarity marches for the antisemitic chants and attacks that regularly accompany them.
Ordinary citizens are rallying not for fascism, but for the preservation of Western civilization — a civilization built on ideas of liberty, democracy, and yes, Judeo-Christian ethics. The Israeli flags among them are no accident: Israel is the frontline of that fight.
Israel as the West’s Early Warning System
Israel has been confronting the Islamist threat for decades. The same ideology that drove Hamas to butcher Israeli civilians drives lone-wolf attacks in Europe and inspires extremists worldwide. When Western governments appease these forces, whether through mass immigration without assimilation or through recognition of a Palestinian state that funds terror, they embolden the very actors who seek to dismantle the freedoms we hold dear.
Melanie Phillips warned of this trajectory in Londonistan, and Samuel Huntington predicted it as a “clash of civilizations.” The choice facing the West is stark: defend its values — including its alliance with Israel — or surrender them piece by piece to those who despise them.
A Crossroads for the West
What we are seeing is not merely a debate over immigration or foreign policy. It is a civilizational moment. Will the West continue down the road of self-flagellation, embracing narratives that delegitimize its past, erode its future, and demonize its allies? Or will it reclaim its identity and defend the principles that made it a beacon of freedom?
The stakes could not be higher. Attacks on Israel are attacks on the very foundations of Western civilization. If we fail to see that, we may wake up one day to find that the war we ignored abroad has arrived on our own streets.
The people rallying in Australia and the UK have chosen to wake up now. It’s time the rest of us did, too.