Abstract
The New Populist Right and Europe: Visions and Divisions
Hans-Jörg Trenz and Miklos Sukosd
The new populist right has emerged as a political force all over Europe. Populist right-wing political parties and movements draw on symbolic references to traditional nationalism as well as the mobilisation of anti-European sentiments. At the same time, new populist forces move strategically within the European political space where their visions, ideologies and agendas are shared and often converge in the rejection of globalization, migration or human rights. At the same time, different regions of Europe (West vs. East, North vs. South) experience different types of populist politics. In this workshop, we focus on the strategies and ideas of the new populist right in Europe. The question to be addressed is how styles and discourses of political mobilization of the populist right converge and diverge and how these processes can be explained.
Speakers in our workshop will discuss populist visions, ideologies and agendas from different angles and from different regions in Western, Eastern and Southern Europe. Our starting point is the relative success of populist right-wing mobilization that occurs simultaneously in several parts of Europe. In the last few years, these new parties became important political players both in national and European and international politics. In several countries, they are among the strongest political forces, or have already formed government.
We contend that this success cannot simply be explained as a resurgence of right-wing nationalism, but its profound transformation. The new visions of the extreme right often results from deep divisions and new cleavages within European societies, which seem to be split down the middle. One part of the population has benefitted from globalization and is keen to exploit the cultural and professional experiences it offers. Other parts feel an acute loss of social security and income, but also a cultural and social threat from market liberalization and international migration. It is the sentiments and reactions of the latter group, which are transforming liberal democracies in new ways. The emergence of the populist right ideologies, agendas and mobilization takes place in the process of translating such divisions into shared visions that are often based on antagonistic and reactive values than those promoted by Europeanisation and globalization.
These antagonistic reactions include: not open and flexible markets but market protection; not mobility but sedentary lifestyles; not cultural hybridity but bounded community; not universal human rights but popular sovereignty and ethnic identity; not secularisation but religion and traditional legitimation; not patchwork families and gender pluralism, but traditional gender roles – not globalization and Europeanization but nationalism.
The structure of the workshop
In the first section we focus on elements of a conceptual framework for understanding populist right-wing parties. Here we raise questions regarding several analytical dimensions. What are these parties’ views on immigration and religion (especially vis-a-vis Islam and Christianity)? How populist are they and what kind of populism do they represent? What are their position regarding labour policies—and how do these positions relate to the national political contexts? Do they typically have charismatic leaders, who present a “one wo/man show”? How do they construct gender discourses in the context of nationalism? What is their position regarding national history? What is their geopolitical agenda regarding the EU and Russia, and larger ideological vision for Europe and a new world order? In short, how is their new nationalism different from earlier nationalist ideologies in Europe?
The subsequent sections present a comparative approach, exploring the different expressions this important new political movement has found in different European regions. We analyze key populist right-wing parties in a comparative perspective in four regions of Europe: Western, Northern, East/Central and Southern Europe, respectively. The workshop wishes to explore how, despite of similar ideologies and visions, the actual policy agendas of these parties differ significantly in different parts of Europe. We also examine how the new populist right-wing parties collaborate, and how Russia supports the dynamics of their international cooperation.
Hans-Jörg Trenz and Miklos Sukosd
The new populist right has emerged as a political force all over Europe. Populist right-wing political parties and movements draw on symbolic references to traditional nationalism as well as the mobilisation of anti-European sentiments. At the same time, new populist forces move strategically within the European political space where their visions, ideologies and agendas are shared and often converge in the rejection of globalization, migration or human rights. At the same time, different regions of Europe (West vs. East, North vs. South) experience different types of populist politics. In this workshop, we focus on the strategies and ideas of the new populist right in Europe. The question to be addressed is how styles and discourses of political mobilization of the populist right converge and diverge and how these processes can be explained.
Speakers in our workshop will discuss populist visions, ideologies and agendas from different angles and from different regions in Western, Eastern and Southern Europe. Our starting point is the relative success of populist right-wing mobilization that occurs simultaneously in several parts of Europe. In the last few years, these new parties became important political players both in national and European and international politics. In several countries, they are among the strongest political forces, or have already formed government.
We contend that this success cannot simply be explained as a resurgence of right-wing nationalism, but its profound transformation. The new visions of the extreme right often results from deep divisions and new cleavages within European societies, which seem to be split down the middle. One part of the population has benefitted from globalization and is keen to exploit the cultural and professional experiences it offers. Other parts feel an acute loss of social security and income, but also a cultural and social threat from market liberalization and international migration. It is the sentiments and reactions of the latter group, which are transforming liberal democracies in new ways. The emergence of the populist right ideologies, agendas and mobilization takes place in the process of translating such divisions into shared visions that are often based on antagonistic and reactive values than those promoted by Europeanisation and globalization.
These antagonistic reactions include: not open and flexible markets but market protection; not mobility but sedentary lifestyles; not cultural hybridity but bounded community; not universal human rights but popular sovereignty and ethnic identity; not secularisation but religion and traditional legitimation; not patchwork families and gender pluralism, but traditional gender roles – not globalization and Europeanization but nationalism.
The structure of the workshop
In the first section we focus on elements of a conceptual framework for understanding populist right-wing parties. Here we raise questions regarding several analytical dimensions. What are these parties’ views on immigration and religion (especially vis-a-vis Islam and Christianity)? How populist are they and what kind of populism do they represent? What are their position regarding labour policies—and how do these positions relate to the national political contexts? Do they typically have charismatic leaders, who present a “one wo/man show”? How do they construct gender discourses in the context of nationalism? What is their position regarding national history? What is their geopolitical agenda regarding the EU and Russia, and larger ideological vision for Europe and a new world order? In short, how is their new nationalism different from earlier nationalist ideologies in Europe?
The subsequent sections present a comparative approach, exploring the different expressions this important new political movement has found in different European regions. We analyze key populist right-wing parties in a comparative perspective in four regions of Europe: Western, Northern, East/Central and Southern Europe, respectively. The workshop wishes to explore how, despite of similar ideologies and visions, the actual policy agendas of these parties differ significantly in different parts of Europe. We also examine how the new populist right-wing parties collaborate, and how Russia supports the dynamics of their international cooperation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Publication date | 24 Nov 2017 |
| Publication status | Published - 24 Nov 2017 |
| Event | "The New Populist Right and Europe: Visions and Divisions" - University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark Duration: 29 Nov 2017 → 29 Nov 2017 https://www.eurochallenge.ku.dk/events/research-workshop-november-29-2017/ |
Workshop
| Workshop | "The New Populist Right and Europe: Visions and Divisions" |
|---|---|
| Location | University of Copenhagen |
| Country/Territory | Denmark |
| City | Copenhagen |
| Period | 29/11/2017 → 29/11/2017 |
| Internet address |
