Domesticating Neoliberalism: ‘Domification’ and the Contradictions of the Populist Countermovement in Poland

Pacześniak²

2023

Front. Sociol.

The goals of this article are to describe and analyze the main themes in the narratives about feminists that can be found in the populist right-wing press in Poland. Although feminists—alongside LGBT circles, refugees and the left—had been treated as a threat to the existing order before, it was the women's revolt on Polish streets in late autumn 2020 that triggered a series of reports on the women's movement in the right-wing press. In addition to analyzing the content of right-wing weeklies on women's protests, the article also shows how these protests later influenced changes in the political attitudes of young people, social activism and the attitudes of opposition parties in Poland toward cultural and moral issues. The analysis is based on the content analysis of articles published in right-wing weeklies and survey data. The authors conclude that in contemporary Poland the women's movement can contribute to overthrowing not only the rule of the populist right but also the entire conservative order resulting from the post-1989 neoliberal transformation.

Section: Socio-political Context Of Feminist Protests In Polandmentioning

confidence: 99%

“They attack the family and order”: Right-wing media about feminists and the political consequences of the women's strike in Poland

Pacześniak²

2023

Front. Sociol.

“…Examples of these practices can be found in many places around the world including in the Philippines (Ramos, 2021), Brazil (de Souza, 2020), Hungary (Fabry, 2019), and Turkey (Akçay, 2021). Also in Poland, the social policy of PiS did not undermine, contrary to their propaganda, the logic of neoliberalism (Shields, 2021). On the other hand, the combination of nationalist ideology, neoliberal practices and the weakening of democratic institutions has allowed them to radically change the political system.…”

Section: Pis As An Illustration Of the Rule And Logic Of Right-wing P...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Poland, PiS won power by reviving nationalist and xenophobic sentiments during the so-called 2015 migration crisis and by promising social support for losers of the neoliberal transformation. Although their flagship Family 500+ programme (Shields, 2019), aimed at helping families with children, did not undermine the neoliberal logic, did not really change the social structure and even made it dependent on the grace of the neoliberal state, it was a big magnet generating political support for PiS (Shields, 2021).…”

Section: Party/state Repressionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is it possible to defeat right-wing populist authorities by winning elections? The erosion of democracy and the system of the triple-masters class in Poland

Pacześniak

2022

Front. Polit. Sci.

The article poses an extremely important question of whether it is possible to remove authoritarian authorities using the methods of parliamentary democracy in a situation where the government has weakened or dismantled democratic mechanisms and institutions. The article treats the rule of right-wing populists as a comprehensive ruling system of the triple-masters class (identified with the apparatus of the ruling party), who fully controls the political, cultural, and economic spheres. The nationalist cultural and ideological superstructure legitimizes the rule of right-wing populists, but it is only a means to build the economic hegemony of the triple-masters class and strengthen their political power. Based on the material gathered during focus group interviews with opposition party activists, the article outlines the main problems faced by the opposition in the state of the triple-masters class.

“…Nevertheless, they strengthened the social base for the populist-nationalist policy among the losers of the neoliberal transformation. (Shields, 2021) Every failure of neoliberalism produced more followers of the populist right. While the global turbulence of capitalism has opened the door to Brexit and brought Trump into power, it has increased the popularity of right-wing nationalist populism in Eastern Europe (Chowdhury and Żuk, 2018).…”

Section: Conclusion: Revolt Of the Periphery Against Liberal Modernis...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nevertheless, they strengthened the social base for the populist-nationalist policy among the losers of the neoliberal transformation. (Shields, 2021)…”

Section: Conclusion: Revolt Of the Periphery Against Liberal Modernis...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Independence Day as a nationalist ritual: Framework of the March of Independence in Poland

2022

Ethnography

The article contains a cultural analysis of the March of Independence as a symbol of nationalist revival in Poland. The authors analyse the social context of this event, show its history and, inspired by Goffman’s classic approach, describe the theatrical setting of this annual event – its scenography, props, musical setting and costumes (‘patriotic clothing’). In addition to participant observation, the authors analyse materials posted by the organisers of the March of Independence on the YouTube channel. The article presents historical and cultural patterns used by contemporary Polish nationalists – primarily symbols, messages and ideology of nationalists from the interwar period (1918–1939). According to the authors, events such as the March of Independence are a manifestation of local discourse over Western modernisation. The neoliberal order in Eastern Europe cannot do without the help of nationalism – losers of the neoliberal transformation have become the main basis for the ‘national awakening’.