The Global Far Right (II)
Written by Alfonso Elizondo
The current rise of the ‘far right’ cannot be explained only by the present crisis the world is experiencing; it dates back to the 1980s due to a combination of economic orthodoxy, Christian Messianism and cultural nationalism to which Donald Trump has added the discourse of the recovery of the greatness of the ‘American nation’ and his shameless display of immorality in the media.
At the same time, in Europe, far-right parties have grown dramatically in the last decade and already have a strong institutional presence, from those who unapologetically follow the Nazi martial creed (Hungary’s Jobbik or Greece’s Golden Dawn), to those that have been linked from the beginning to historical fascism such as the National Front in France. What they all have in common is the basic discourse of inclusive nationalism and have found in Trump the transatlantic ally to give free rein to their particular idea of ’patriotism.’
In Spain, apart from residual Francoism, the right is incorporated into the political game through the Popular Party, a faithful guardian of the ‘values’ of dictatorship and a natural representative of the neoliberal creed. Many of the principles of the classic far right with respect to migration policies are discriminatory and punitive, in addition to containing repressive elements on the issue of rights and freedoms.
Both right wings share the same essential values, such as the idea of private property as a basic pillar of society, the myth of the nation as a higher reality than that of its own people and the view of hierarchy as a basic element of society. However, something is hidden when the empty term populism is used to define the far right.
On the game board of neoliberalism, the far right fulfils its role of hiding the true roots of social injustice and the current crisis in order to neutralize the possibility of questions being raised about the responsibility of megacapitals, whose ability to continue to dominate under globalization depends on whether or not there is any fallback to nationalism.
What the far right around the world is doing is sowing discord among the losers of the neoliberal model and encouraging pride in feeling superior as well as channeling popular anger towards the most vulnerable. While the war between the poor is being fuelled, neoliberal circles continue to share the cake and the social breakdown continues to worsen.
That is the goal to be pursued by progressive human beings at this time. If we do not attack the current far-rights, there will undoubtedly be an unprecedented involution in human society.
Addendum: The only previous history of involution in human society occurred during the Paleolithic Age, when the existing tribes fought among themselves, prolonged nomadism and stopped the growth of the world population of Homo sapiens for hundreds of thousands of years.