Europe's political establishment is facing a growing nationalist backlash over years of permissive immigration policies, with young Europeans taking to the streets to demand tougher borders and an end to mass migration.
From Italy to Spain and France, demonstrations have attracted thousands of participants, ranging from conventional conservatives demanding immigration reform to openly fascist organizations embracing the symbols of Europe's authoritarian past. While some marchers carry torches and perform Roman salutes, others are ordinary nationalists concerned about their countries' borders, highlighting the distinction between conservative movements and extremist groups seeking to capitalize on public frustration.
And their concerns about the scale of immigration are backed by official statistics, with asylum applications in the European Union surging from approximately 260,000 in 2010 to more than 1.3 million in 2015, according to the European Council. The influx, driven partly by wars in Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan, coincided with approximately 1.8 million detected irregular border crossings in 2015 alone, according to the European Council.
The migration pressures persisted into the following decade, with first-time asylum applications climbing to approximately 1.05 million in 2023 after declining during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Eurostat. Although applications declined to approximately 669,400 in 2025, millions of Ukrainians displaced by Russia's invasion were also living under temporary protection across the bloc, according to the European Council.
The fascist label has also been directed at electoral conservatives, with British Reform UK council leader George Finch alleging he was called a "fascist" before an assault, according to The Guardian.
In Germany, a Guardian opinion column linked opposition to the AfD with combating fascism, although a German court subsequently blocked authorities from designating the entire party as confirmed extremist pending a final ruling, Reuters reported.
(Photo by Ivan Romano/Getty Images)
The nationalist demonstrations take on new significance as widespread unrest grips France and Italy, where rioters looted Milan storefronts, torched vehicles and set the historic city hall in Limoges ablaze during October protests, according to the Associated Press. Some of the "protestors" allegedly crossed the line into terrorism when they decided to openly carry firearms.
In Milan, approximately 2,000 demonstrators marched through the streets on April 29, carrying Italian flags and torches before performing Roman salutes in unison, according to Reuters and ANSA. (RELATED: Europe's Riots Take Terrifying Turn As Anti-Terror Police Investigate Arson, Reports Of Armed Rioters Surface)
The authorities need to get out of the way of the Italian men of Milan. pic.twitter.com/ngR3SAZDl5
— 🩸REKT Specialist is unbanned! (Parody?) /AFAO/🩸 (@GoatRoper911) October 18, 2026
The nighttime procession commemorated Sergio Ramelli, an 18-year-old activist affiliated with the Italian Social Movement's youth organization who died in 1975 after being attacked by far-left militants. Participants marched in organized columns toward a memorial on Via Paladini, where they conducted a ceremony honoring fallen comrades, according to ANSA.
Among the demonstrators were activists associated with neo-fascist CasaPound Italia and Lealtà Azione, organizations operating within Italy's nationalist movement. Participants carried a banner honoring fallen comrades, while the procession's conclusion featured the synchronized fascist-era salute, ANSA reported.
One image posted by ANSA further corroborates the previous video, showing a different angle of the procession finale, complete with Italian flags and Roman salutes.
Camice nere e saluti romani, la sfilata fascista per Ramelli a Milano https://t.co/bJF1vaD1dD
— La Stampa (@LaStampa) April 30, 2026
The demonstration was particularly notable for its scale and its participants' open use of symbols associated with Benito Mussolini's fascist dictatorship. Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala condemned the Roman salutes while acknowledging Ramelli's place among the victims of Italy's historical political violence, according to ANSA.
The Milan gathering was not organized as an immigration protest, however, and its size does not establish that Italy's neo-fascist organizations are attracting more members than in previous years. Rather, it demonstrates that groups explicitly embracing elements of the country's fascist history retain the organizational capacity to stage substantial public demonstrations.
The connection to contemporary immigration politics became much clearer in Rome on June 13, when thousands of demonstrators marched through the Italian capital demanding the remigration of illegal African and Muslim immigrants back to their countries of origin, according to the Associated Press and La Repubblica.
The demonstration included activists from nationalist organizations such as CasaPound and Veneto Fronte Skinheads, with approximately 4,000 participants reported by La Repubblica. Some shouted slogans praising Mussolini and performed Roman salutes during the march, according to the Associated Press and ANSA.
Al corteo “Remigrazione e riconquista”, organizzato a Roma dal comitato guidato da Luca Marsella e sostenuto anche da realtà dell’estrema destra come CasaPound, si sono viste decine di tricolori, cori come «non siamo antifascisti» e braccia tese, anche durante l’Inno d’Italia.… pic.twitter.com/6ti2OHrTlT
— Repubblica (@repubblica) June 14, 2026
The march also attracted participants from abroad, including representatives of nationalist networks in Poland, Hungary and Spain. Demonstrators carried Italian flags through Rome's Prati district while police maintained a significant security presence, according to La Repubblica.
Italy's electoral conservatives and openly fascist street organizations should not be treated as interchangeable. Opposition to illegal immigration, demands for stronger borders and support for deporting people without legal status do not, by themselves, constitute fascism, whereas the groups participating in these demonstrations have openly displayed fascist-era symbolism.
Spain has witnessed similarly explicit displays, including one demonstration in which teenagers reportedly constituted much of the crowd.
On May 23, 2025, approximately 300 demonstrators affiliated with Falange Española marched through Madrid demanding the removal of immigrants, with the average participant reportedly around 18 years old, according to Research Against Global Authoritarianism and El País.
Many participants wore black clothing, carried Spanish flags and marched in organized rows while promoting remigration. Some delivered fascist salutes and sang the Falangist anthem, according to El País.
The Falange traces its political identity to the movement founded by José Antonio Primo de Rivera, whose ideology became closely associated with Francisco Franco's dictatorship. The organization's continued use of historical fascist symbols makes the Madrid procession materially different from conventional conservative demonstrations over immigration policy.
One incident went viral during the protests in Spain, where Spanish women brought shower gel to the event, pointing out how far-left extremists generally tend to smell and have poor hygiene. One video, originally posted by Spanish news agency La Bandera, shows the comedic event unfolding.
Jóvenes manifestantes muestran un bote de gel de baño a los acampados de la Puerta del Sol. pic.twitter.com/o9WwEihnDC
— La Bandera (@labanderaes) October 12, 2026
The young participants demanded a harder response to immigration than that offered by mainstream political authorities. Some even directed insults at Madrid's conservative regional president, Isabel Díaz Ayuso, accusing her of insufficiently restrictive policies concerning unaccompanied migrant minors, El País reported.
The event also attracted counterdemonstrators, prompting authorities to shorten the nationalist march's planned route and position police between opposing groups, according to El País.
More recently, young demonstrators displaying fascist symbols confronted housing activists in Madrid's Puerta del Sol following Spain's National Day military parade on Oct. 12, 2026. Some performed fascist salutes and sang the Falangist anthem while police intervened to separate the competing groups, according to the Spanish Eye and Spanish public broadcaster RTVE.
🔴 Tensión en la Puerta del Sol: asistentes al desfile del 12 de octubre increpan y se enfrentan a los acampados por el derecho a la vivienda https://t.co/Qws0x16LFt pic.twitter.com/t0zj3ARD5F
— Europa Press (@europapress) October 12, 2026
Three people were arrested and one police officer was injured during the October confrontation, according to RTVE. One photo uploaded by Spanish news agency elDiario.es on X shows the people at the event appear to be mostly teenagers and young adults.
‼️Cánticos de Cara al Sol y saludos fascistas entre un grupo de asistentes al desfile del 12 de octubre que ha tratado de entrar a la acampada de Sol https://t.co/vhIvcSnSJ6
— elDiario.es (@eldiarioes) October 12, 2026
Unlike the earlier Falange demonstration, the October confrontation was not primarily organized around immigration. Nevertheless, both incidents illustrate how explicitly fascist symbols remain visible among sections of Spain's younger nationalist scene.
France has witnessed its own demonstrations involving young nationalist activists, including a massive gathering following the killing of a 23-year-old activist.
Approximately 3,200 people marched through Lyon on February 21, 2026, commemorating Quentin Deranque, who died after being beaten during a confrontation involving opposing political activists, according to Euronews.
A video uploaded by French news agency BFMTV shows the protesters marching in Lyon.
Mort de Quentin Deranque : selon la préfecture, 3.200 personnes participent à la marche à Lyon pic.twitter.com/WdJ9gF1Tgd
— BFM (@BFMTV) February 21, 2026
The demonstrations attracted participants from multiple organizations within France's nationalist movement. French president Emmanuel Macron appealed for calm following Deranque's killing, according to Euronews.
Another video, also uploaded by BFMTV, shows that some protesters carried torches as they marched.
Mort de Quentin Deranque : des torches ont été brandies en hommage au jeune homme à Lyon pic.twitter.com/ZDi7bL6vvD
— BFM (@BFMTV) February 21, 2026
Images from the gathering showed activists carrying torches and marching through Lyon, a city with a history of confrontations between far-right and far-left militant organizations. The demonstration attracted nationalist supporters alongside known extremists, including neo-Nazi activists, according to Le Monde.
A third video from BFMTV, clipped from its TV channel, shows a wide shot depicting the large number of protesters.
Mort de Quentin Deranque: retour sur cette journée d'hommage à Lyon pic.twitter.com/mYSU3zqExK
— BFM (@BFMTV) February 21, 2026
Deranque's death became a political flashpoint, with opponents of France's far-left France Unbowed movement raising questions about its relationship with militant activists. The killing involved suspects allegedly connected to the radical left, while the party's leadership denied responsibility and condemned the violence, according to the Associated Press.
France's militant nationalist movement has also staged demonstrations invoking older neo-fascist traditions.
On May 10, 2025, activists associated with the Comité du 9 Mai marched through Paris carrying Celtic crosses and other symbols during an annual commemoration. Some participants displayed neo-Nazi insignia and were linked to previously dissolved organizations, according to independent footage published by CLPRESS.
As in Milan, the Paris event centered on a historical commemoration rather than immigration. Its significance lies in the continued coordination of openly neo-fascist organizations, rather than evidence that conservative French voters broadly support their ideology.
Elsewhere in Europe, immigration-related street movements have demonstrated a capacity to mobilize substantially larger crowds; although their participants were not 'far-right' or fascists, they were conservatives advocating for the conservation of the United Kingdom.
In London, approximately 150,000 people attended the Sept. 13, 2025, Unite the Kingdom rally organized by anti-immigration activist Tommy Robinson, according to a subsequent attendance estimate released by the Metropolitan Police.
One video uploaded by Reuters shows the protesters marching, arms linked together, with dozens of English and British flags.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched through central London, carrying flags of England and Britain, for a demonstration organized by the anti-immigrant activist Tommy Robinson https://t.co/T8GEzx73KE pic.twitter.com/izDVFt1ZPf
— Reuters (@Reuters) September 13, 2025
Participants carried British and English flags while voicing concerns about immigration, national identity and government policies. The protest also produced clashes with police, although participation in the broader gathering did not indicate affiliation with "far-right" organizations, Reuters reported.
Similar immigration-related demonstrations occurred in the Netherlands, where hundreds of protesters clashed with police in The Hague in September 2025. Rioters set a police vehicle ablaze and vandalized a political party's office, while the demonstration's organizer subsequently disavowed the violence, according to Euronews.
Poland also witnessed widespread anti-immigration demonstrations in July 2025, with protests organized by the right-wing Confederation party in more than 80 cities. Demonstrators demanded stricter border controls and opposed government immigration policies, according to Euronews. (RELATED: Manifest Destiny Is Born Again Among Young Conservatives On Social Media)
In Austria, roughly 200 political activists participated in a July 2025 demonstration advocating remigration, including participants from outside the country. Police also dealt with multiple counterdemonstrations, which resulted in 56 temporary arrests, according to Austrian public broadcaster ORF.
Despite the growing demonstrations, first-time asylum applications in the European Union fell 27% to approximately 669,400 in 2025, with declines recorded in 24 member states, according to the European Commission. Nevertheless, immigration remains a major rallying issue for nationalist movements across Europe.
The demonstrations highlight the divide between conservatives seeking tighter immigration controls and extremist nationalist organizations. From young Falangists in Madrid to torch-bearing militants in Milan, the gatherings also raise questions about whether Europe's nationalist movements are attracting a new generation of supporters.
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