The raised fist, or the clenched fist, is a long-standing image of mixed meaning, often a symbol of solidarity, especially with a political movement. It is a common symbol representing a wide range of political ideologies, most notably socialism, communism, anarchism, and trade unionism, and can also be used as a salute expressing unity, strength, or resistance.
Performer raising a fist at Woodstock Festival Poland
This painting by Honoré Daumier of the French Revolution of 1848 includes a possible early example of a "political clenched fist," according to curator Francesca Seravalle.
This 1912 poster by Mihály Bíró uses the fist as a symbol of the collective power of the massed workers from whom it rises.
Solidarity cartoon 1917
Solidarity or solidarism is an awareness of shared interests, objectives, standards, and sympathies creating a psychological sense of unity of groups or classes. Solidarity does not reject individuals and sees individuals as the basis of society. It refers to the ties in a society that bind people together as one. The term is generally employed in sociology and the other social sciences as well as in philosophy and bioethics. It is a significant concept in Catholic social teaching and in Christian democratic political ideology. Although being interconnected concepts, solidarity, by contrast to charity, takes a systems change approach.
A raised fist in solidarity of the worker movement
The Helsinki City Theatre in Helsinki, Finland illuminated in the colors of the flag of Ukraine, in solidarity with Ukraine during the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine