Why Do Western Activists Still Defend Hamas?
While Western activists chant slogans in defense of Hamas, Palestinians on the ground are risking their lives to protest the group’s brutal rule. This oped exposes the deep disconnect between Gaza’s cries for freedom and the West’s dangerous romanticization of terror.
William Barclay
May 20, 2025 - 9:51 PM
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Hamas: “Freedom Fighters”?
Since Hamas’ terror attacks on October 7, many Western political activists and academics have tried to rebrand the terrorist organization as a legitimate voice of the Palestinian resistance.
Groups like Black Lives Matter Phoenix praised Hamas operatives as “freedom fighters,” claiming that “freedom fighters are not terrorists.” Likewise, UC Berkeley’s celebrated philosopher and gender studies scholar Judith Butler has boldly claimed that the Hamas attacks on Israeli civilians on October 7 were not acts of terrorism or antisemitism, but rather “armed resistance” — a desperate struggle for justice, freedom, and equality for Palestinians living under oppression.
But these narratives don’t reflect the truth on the ground. While pro-Palestinian voices in the West attempt to lionize Hamas, the Palestinian people, especially those trapped in Gaza, are desperately trying to rid themselves of the group's violent rule.
Gazans Want Freedom (From Hamas)
The evidence is overwhelming: the people of Gaza don’t see Hamas as liberators, they see them as oppressors. In 2022, Palestinians launched the hashtag #TheyKidnappedGaza to voice their despair under Hamas’ regime. Courageous Palestinian activists like Amer Balosha have risked their lives to expose Hamas' corruption and abuse, noting its billion-dollar assets abroad while Gazans face starvation and poverty.
A 2024 survey by Arab Barometer, the “longest-running and most comprehensive public opinion project in the [Middle East]” revealed that 67% of Gazans distrust Hamas, and 72% believe the group is corrupt. Disillusionment runs deep - not just with Hamas, but with the entire Palestinian leadership.
Widespread anti-Hamas protests have begun to erupt across Gaza. On March 25th, 2025, a wave of brave Palestinians took to the streets in the largest demonstrations against Hamas since the outbreak of the Israel-Palestine conflict on October 7. Courageous protesters gathered at nine locations across the Gaza Strip, chanting “Hamas are terrorists” and “Down with Hamas, we’ve had enough, Hamas!” Less than a month later, on April 16th, the people of Gaza rose up again. In Beit Lahia, a city in northern Gaza, Palestinians once more filled the streets in a vivid cry for freedom and an end to Hamas’ rule.
These demonstrations were met with brutal repression. Hamas militants cracked down violently, and onlookers witnessed the horrific fate of Oday Nasser Al Rabay, a young protester who was kidnapped, tortured, and murdered by Hamas. His disfigured body was dumped at his family’s doorstep, a grim warning for any Palestinian who dares to defy the regime.
Western “Allies” Fuel Oppression
It is a cruel irony that while Palestinians in Gaza are being beaten, starved, and silenced by Hamas, many in North America and Europe, including student groups, academics, and self-proclaimed human rights defenders, continue to justify or even glorify the group.
By refusing to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist entity, these so-called allies are not defending the Palestinian cause, they are propping up one of its greatest enemies. Calls to “abolish Israel” or deny its right to exist do nothing to help Palestinians living under tyranny. The real fight for Palestinian freedom begins with liberating them from Hamas, not from Israel.
Until the world confronts this reality, Palestinians will remain oppressed -not by Zionism, but by their own so-called “liberators.”
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William Barclay
Political Theorist | Private Consultant