Pro-Hamas rhetoric disguised as ‘resistance,’ but the mask is slipping

While covering the first major anti-Israel protest in New York City on October 8, 2023, a day after the Hamas terrorist attacks in Israel, speakers and activists noticeably avoided mentioning Hamas by name, despite praising the group's attack. Instead, they referred to the group as “the resistance” and “freedom fighters.”

I recall a particular instance during a fall protest on Staten Island when a Within Our Lifetime organizer accidentally mentioned Hamas before quickly correcting herself to say “the resistance.”

The Hamas supporters now understand that if they have the numbers and willingness to commit violence, the authorities will give them free rein.

As time has passed and Israel continues to degrade Hamas’ ability to wage war, the far left in the United States has grown more violent because America continues to support Israel. Far leftists' tactics have escalated to match their desire to grind our way of life to a halt, but they have a greater willingness to show who they really support: Hamas.

Nowhere was that more evident than the “surround the White House” protest on June 8. Not only were there people holding signs saying they supported Hamas, but people were starting to dress like the terrorists.

Julio Rosas/Blaze News

Multiple protesters, some with their faces covered, were wearing the green headband that sported the Hamas logo, a common sight in Gaza before the war. They vandalized statues of Revolutionary War heroes. One of the headbands held up a bloodied face mask of Joe Biden. An American flag was burned nearby.

Another group marched with a banner that said, “‘Jihad of victory or martyrdom’ Al-Qassam,” which is Hamas’ military wing.

But more than just the open Hamas supporters across the street from the White House, other protesters in the crowd gave fist bumps and words of encouragement. Multiple protesters asked to take pictures with the terrorist wannabes.

Hamas was not the only terrorist group represented. A masked man wore a baseball cap with a patch that featured the logo of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, which operates in the West Bank.

It cannot be emphasized enough that the pro-Hamas sentiments are not new. They were always there. But after testing the water for months, the protesters have become bolder to show their support for the terrorist organization and are willing to carry out acts to show solidarity.

Julio Rosas/Blaze News

Since last fall, I have been warning anyone willing to listen that these people won’t go to the Middle East to fight; instead, they will try to bring down America from within. After years of mismanaged immigration, worsened by Biden’s border crisis, the enemy is not at the gates — they are within the walls.

It is clear that law enforcement in Washington, D.C., were told to engage as little as possible to avoid any violence from the protesters. U.S. Park Police, which have jurisdiction in Lafayette Square, only had 71 officers to monitor a protest that drew more than 9,000 people. Not only was its civil disturbance unit not on the scene, but the officers who were deployed did not wear riot gear. They were endangered by the lack of equipment and numbers to respond to a chaotic situation.

The Hamas supporters now understand that if they have the numbers and willingness to commit violence, the authorities will give them free rein. It is a lesson that will be painful for the rest of the country should they become bolder in their actions and rhetoric. With the presidential election mere months away, you can be sure they will.