Today in Focus Boriswave, fighting-age men, cultural Marxism: how the far right is changing how we speak
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Oct 20, 2025 Dr. Robert Topinka, an academic specializing in reactionary digital politics at Birkbeck University, explores how far-right language infiltrates mainstream discourse. He discusses the emergence of phrases like 'Boris wave' and their racial implications, explaining the roles of platforms like X and 4chan in spreading extremist memes. Topinka also delves into the manipulative framing of migrants as 'illegal' and the conspiratorial term 'cultural Marxism.' He argues the left should consider adopting similar meme strategies to counteract this trend.
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How 'Boris Wave' Reframes Migration
- 'Boris wave' repackages a real migration trend into a partisan, racialised epithet.
- The term links increased non-EU migration to Boris Johnson and frames newcomers as a deliberate invasion.
Origin Story From X And Rural Examples
- The phrase first circulated on X in June 2024 from an anonymous poster called Max Tempers.
- Users wrote about seeing 'Boris waivers' in rural towns to signal surprise at non-white presence.
How Fringe Terms Launder Into Media
- Small, persistent accounts can seed terms that spread via copy-and-paste culture.
- Creating Wikipedia pages and repeated posting helps sanitise extremist terms into mainstream outlets.