| Kommentar |
Liberal democracy and far right politics – polar opposites?
Across the globe, we have witnessed the resurgence of far right parties and social movements, as well as the normalisation and mainstreaming of exclusionary populist ideas and discourses. In academic and public spheres alike, this development is commonly framed as a threat to liberal democratic structures and institutions which are commonly associated with values such as liberty, tolerance, and equality, as well as continuous, steady progress towards a more egalitarian society. In contrast, the far right is characterised by an aversion to constitutional guarantees and equal rights, as well as exclusionary rhetoric towards marginalised and especially racialised groups. Despite these differences, researchers are calling for a more nuanced take on the relationship between the far right and liberal democracy. Thus, as opposed to seeing the two as polar opposites, a growing number of scholars contend that systemic forms of discrimination and marginalisation embedded in liberal democratic structures and institutions provide opportunities for far right mobilisations.
In this seminar, we will discuss the relationship between the far right and liberal democracy. Amongst others, the following questions will be dealt with: How do far right mobilisations reflect wider structural forms of marginalisation in society? In how far are mainstream political actors complicit in the normalisation of exclusionary populist discourse? In how far does structural racism and other forms of discrimination/domination provide opportunities to far right actors? The focus will be on Europe and especially the UK.
At the end of the seminar, students will work in groups on ideas for counter-measures and present these as a project in the final sessions. Students are encouraged to be creative and can choose their own topics, as well as the issue which the counter-measure aims to respond to. Groups can for instance propose policy changes, educational schemes, as well as ideas for artistic projects, protest actions, and advocacy measures. |
| Literatur |
- Bhambra, G. K. (2017). Brexit, Trump, and ‘methodological whiteness’: On the misrecognition of race and class. The British journal of sociology, 68, S214-S232.
- Bhambra, G. K. (2014). Connected sociologies. Bloomsbury Publishing.
- Bhopal, K. (2018). White privilege: The myth of a post-racial society. Policy Press.
- Kallis, A. (2013). Far-right “contagion” or a failing “mainstream”? How dangerous ideas cross borders and blur boundaries. Democracy and Security, 9(3), 221-246.
- Mondon, A., & Winter, A. (2020). Reactionary democracy: how racism and the populist far right became mainstream. Verso Books.
- Shilliam, R. (2018). Race and the undeserving poor: From abolition to Brexit. Agenda Publishing.
- Wodak, R. (2020). The Politics of Fear: The Shameless Normalization of Far-Right Discourse. Sage.
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