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Neopopulism

21st-century wave of right-wing populism

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The new populism presents itself through a political agent that is disruptive with respect to the traditional parties established in the political system, antagonizing them and sometimes feigning ideological ambiguity –refusing to identify as left or right–, although the core of its message focuses on an anti-establishment approach and it strives to inaugurate political methods that seek to distance themselves from what usually exists in the political arena.

Characteristics and historical background

Claudio Katz has pointed out that, so far, the main difference between the new radicalized and populist right and the fascism of the last century is the massification of violence. In the past, armed militias deployed unprecedented organized violence that later became state terrorism. Whereas, in the case of the new populist right-wing emergence, hostility towards minorities, aggression against dissidents, and hate speech have not yet resulted in political assassinations, purges, massacres, and other open expressions of intolerance and authoritarianism, but remain a possibility. Another important difference is the acceptance, at least nominally, of republican norms and the democratic system, a matter which, although it may have its limitations, has, again, remained the norm so far.

These political forms are not limited to the European experience; similar manifestations can be found in almost every region of the world. The democratic upheaval of the Arab Spring was followed by an ongoing period of conflict and Counter-revolutionaries — the Arab Winter — embodied in militant Islamist groups that have sought to reinstate dictatorial regimes and authoritarian forms of government throughout the region, with clear intolerant attitudes toward secularism and pluralistic religious coexistence. In Latin America, on the other hand, the temporal gap between European fascisms in power and the analogous experiences in this region has been noted, as their emergence here was accompanied by repression (Represión), persecution, and attempts to destroy leftist projects. In Chile, Pinochetism as a regime had some anti-worker social base fuelled by anti-communist fervor, as did the other anti-democratic regimes that came to power through Operation Condor. This is one of the points that, according to Claudio Katz, has made the discussion about the fascist experience in the rest of the world disappear, erroneously assuming that fascism in power, strictly speaking, only occurred in Europe.

But it is forgotten that this reactionary current adopted forms of dependent fascism when the ruling classes of the periphery faced significant threats to their domination. The chronological difference between the two scenarios does not alter these similarities. The peaks of fascism in the periphery occurred during the Cold War, not in 1930–45. This shift in virulent regressive responses was consistent with the geographical mutation of popular uprisings and included massacres of the same magnitude as those recorded in Europe. It suffices to recall, for example, that the crushing of communism in Indonesia claimed a million lives

The changes that occurred after the end of World War II and the collapse of the Eastern Bloc are considered defining moments in the widespread acceptance of liberal democracy as the ideal political model for nations. Consequently, this new populism ostensibly sets goals that do not publicly aspire to overthrow this model, but rather are built around an aversion to a wide variety of specific objectives that share certain common aspects: immigration, multiculturalism, international agreements—such as combating climate change — antifeminism, the struggle to re-legitimize racism, ableism, and aporophobia as well as issues that go beyond these and imply an acceptance of the denial of science and logical thought: anti-intellectualism, irrationalism and conspiracy theories.

An additional point concerns the approach to social, economic, and political problems following the Great Recession, as these reactionary and populist manifestations have also been, to a large extent, the expression of sectors seeking solutions to the crises and the resulting degradation of societies, by searching for scapegoats within those same societies. The distinction between this new right and the phenomenon of neo-fascism, on the other hand, is that it does not necessarily endorse the historical figures of conventional fascism—such as Franco, Hitler or Mussolini - since instead it has achieved a certain degree of independence from these roots, although many of its discursive elements persist to this day.

The emergence of this neopopulism has been a challenge for traditional parties and for liberalism itself, as much of its framework has been eroded, potentially even posing an affront to human rights. The disruption of its agenda and the normalization of its discourse will inevitably have some impact on democratic values, the consequences of which remain to be seen, although it is also noted that its potential for growth varies considerably depending on the context and geographical area in which it emerges.

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