With 2026 already underway, the South Asian diaspora in the United States and United Kingdom stands at a pivotal crossroads. Rising far-right populism, economic anxieties, imperial overreach, and resurgent racism have placed these communities, once again, under intense pressure. Yet, far from succumbing to division or despair, the diaspora is increasingly contributing to broad, multiracial coalitions resisting authoritarianism, oligarchic capture, and elite dominance. The old chant “The people united will never be defeated”, resonates deeply. History repeatedly proves that when ordinary people overcome fear and manufactured divisions to stand together for justice and dignity, even the most entrenched powers falter.

For South Asians in the U.S. and U.K., 2026 offers real prospects for hope, rooted in cross-community solidarity, anti-racist mobilisation, and a shared rejection of big-money rule. In the United States, the South Asian diaspora of over five million has faced a sharp escalation in hostility under Donald Trump’s second term. Hate incidents surged after the 2024 election – racial slurs increased by 66% while threats of violence went up by almost 60%, mostly against South Asians, according to the Stop AAPI Hate organisation. Far-right influencers scapegoated Indians over H-1B visas and tariffs, even turning on once-favoured figures like Vivek Ramaswamy. This backlash shattered lingering “model minority” illusions, reminding communities that conditional acceptance can evaporate overnight.

Far-right Against Progressives 

Far-right alignment remains limited and contested. A vocal minority, often upper-caste, affluent Hindus influenced by Hindutva networks, supported Trump through groups like Hindus for America First and the Republican Hindu Coalition, attracted to anti-Muslim rhetoric and ‘America First’ nationalism. Transnational links with India’s Bharatiya Janata Party, the political party Prime Minister Narendra Modi is associated with, amplified this appeal. This support is largely confined to certain Hindu Indian segments and does not extend to Pakistanis, Bangladeshis, Sri Lankans, most Sikhs, or progressive Hindus.

According to the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, South Asian voting in 2024 showed a large majority backing Kamala Harris against Trump, with a small rightward shift but still a clear progressive majority. A report in Zeteo showed that Muslim Americans, despite defections due to the Democratic party’s refusal to platform pro-Palestinian voices at their national convention, did not ‘swing’ the election for Trump.

Crucially, even among Trump voters, many reject elite dominance and big-money influence, mirroring grassroots MAGA disillusionment over withheld Epstein files and broken economic promises.

Progressive South Asian organisations are at the forefront of resistance. Hindus for Human Rights, the Jakara Movement, and Sadhana critique Hindutva-MAGA alliances as short-sighted and dangerous, championing pluralism and human rights instead. These groups intersect with wider coalitions like the ‘No Kings’ protests, which mobilised millions against mass deportations, oligarchic capture via figures like Elon Musk, and authoritarian displays.

South Asians contribute significantly through labour organising, immigrant rights defence, and anti-war activism. Campaigns against Southeast Asian refugee deportations often overlap with South Asian solidarity efforts, underscoring shared vulnerabilities under restrictive immigration policies.

Reform UK and South Asians

In the United Kingdom, the diaspora of over four million navigates similar tensions, with diverse and polarised views on the Reform UK party led by Nigel Farage who earlier spearheaded the campaign for Britain to quit the European Union. Farage, who campaigned for Brexit on the basis of stopping migration from eastern Europe, is widely criticised for his dog-whistle racism.

Reform UK is now one of Britain’s leading political parties. A minority, including British Indians, has warmed to Reform UK, with support tripling from 3% in the 2024 general election to around 10% by late 2025, according to the Oxford University-based 1928 Institute’s British Indian Census.

Economic concerns over crime, living costs, and public services drive this shift among affluent or conservative Hindus, some influenced by Hindutva networks. Farage’s occasional preference for Indian migrants (contrasted with others) and his “stop the boats” rhetoric resonate with this segment, despite his opposition to India-U.K. trade deals that would ease skilled worker mobility.

By contrast, the predominantly Muslim Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities overwhelmingly reject Reform UK. YouGov polling, a respected opinion polling organisation, recorded a net favourability of -79 for Farage among Pakistani/Bangladeshi Britons from October 2025, with 69% of ethnic minorities viewing the party as racist. Labour retains strong support here, though Gaza solidarity has strained ties.

In areas like Tower Hamlets, one of the most economically-deprived districts of London, community leaders dismiss significant Reform UK inroads, citing policies hostile to working-class migrants and welfare recipients. Overall, Reform UK’s appeal remains marginal and demographically narrow within the diaspora.

On the Frontlines of Resistance 

This broad rejection became vividly clear when South Asian communities stood on the frontlines of resistance during the 2024 summer far-right riots, sparked by misinformation falsely claiming that a Muslim migrant perpetrated the Southport stabbings. Attackers targeted mosques, asylum-seeker hotels, and minority businesses, reviving traumatic memories of 1970s-80s “P**i-bashing” for older generations.

In Birmingham, hundreds of mostly Asian men gathered with Palestinian flags to defend neighbourhoods. In Bolton, anti-racist counter-protesters, including Asians, vastly outnumbered far-right groups. Bangladeshi-heritage organisers in Walthamstow, London, drew direct inspiration from homeland student protests against authoritarianism, mobilising unified crowds chanting against fascism. In Accrington, pub-goers embraced Muslim counter-protesters in scenes of spontaneous solidarity, reported the BBC. Liverpool mosques offered food and opened doors for dialogue to de-escalate tensions.

These actions echoed historic defiance, such as from the Asian Youth Movements bloodying the fascist National Front in the 1970s. The unified anti-racist and anti-fascist counter-protests of 7 August 2024 dwarfed far-right gatherings nationwide, with Southasians prominent in declaring “refugees welcome here.”

The riots exposed deep Islamophobia and racism, but the swift, multiracial response, led in many places by Southasians, demonstrated that far-right mobilisation collapses when confronted with determined, united anti-fascist opposition.

Arithmetic of Power Shifts

Yet, internal challenges persist. Some Indians reject the “South Asian” label to distance themselves from Muslim-majority neighbours, reflecting homeland partitions and contemporary tensions. Yet progressive voices increasingly bridge these divides, promoting pan-South Asian unity against common threats.

Looking ahead, the prospects are genuinely optimistic precisely because history (largely) affirms that the masses united will never be defeated. The U.S. midterms and U.K. local elections in May will test far-right advances, but diaspora activism, leveraging economic grievances, institutional pushback, such as Indiana’s GOP revolt against Trump, and shared experiences of hate will position South Asians to strengthen anti-far-right coalitions.

Progressive majorities within the diaspora, rejecting temptations like MAGA or Reform UK, are already building bridges with labour, civil rights, and anti-imperial movements. Even conservative elements, disillusioned by elite betrayals and unfulfilled promises, create potential convergence points around accountability and fairness.

The diaspora defies stereotypes of passivity or uniformity. Rooted in anti-colonial legacies, from the independence struggles that united diverse faiths and regions against British rule to recent homeland uprisings in Bangladesh and farmer protests in India, it embodies resilience and the power of collective action.

When South Asians organise across faith, class, and national origin lines, standing with Black, Latino, white working-class, and other allies, they help fracture the divide-and-rule strategies that sustain far-right growth. This is the deeper truth of “the people united will never be defeated.” Elites and far-right forces rely on division: Pitting workers against immigrants, Hindu against Muslim, citizens against refugees.

When those barriers crumble, as they did in U.K. counter-riots and U.S. protest coalitions, the arithmetic of power shifts irrevocably. The majority has never fully embraced far-right narratives; constant portrayals of societies as hopelessly polarised serve only to discourage participation. Yet participation, voting, protesting, striking, and protecting neighbours is what turns minority extremism back.

In 2026, with global crises deepening, the necessity and opportunity for unity are clearer than ever. The South Asian diaspora, drawing on its history of resistance and its lived experience of both scapegoating and solidarity, is exceptionally well-placed to help forge those unbreakable alliances.

The cracks in imperial and far-right facades are widening. Through them, as people unite in pursuit of justice, dignity, and genuine democracy, light is entering. History suggests it will prevail.

(The author is a Professor of International Politics and Associate Dean of Research in the School of Policy and Global Affairs at City St. George’s, University of London. He is also a Fellow of the Academy of Social Sciences and an International Fellow at the ROADS Initiative think tank, Islamabad, and author of several books, including Foundations of the American Century. By special arrangement with  Sapan )