Nazism, neoliberalism, and the Trumpist challenge to democracy

Abstract

Trumpism demands that scholars rethink the categories commonly used to critique authoritarian and pro-market regimes. We seek here to contribute to this rethinking with a series of reflections on how the terms “Nazi” and “neoliberal” cannot be used without careful consideration of the ways in which they complicate one another. In particular, we suggest that scholars must be careful about comparing Trumpism to Nazism, because, in the past, the “Weimar analogy” was used to justify anti-democratic structures of governance. The latter is an important trap to avoid, because we ultimately conclude that Trump’s monstrous merging of neoliberal and Nazi tendencies can only be overcome with democratic struggle.

Authoritarianism, Populism, and the Environment: Comparative Experiences, Insights, and Perspectives

“…In the wave of authoritarian and populist politics we are currently experiencing, each national instance, of course, has vitally important specificities and a trajectory that is unique at a sufficient level of resolution. Yet, the political figures and regimes mentioned share a great many common features, as many have noted (Bessner and Sparke 2017;Fraser 2017;Snyder 2017;Albright 2018;Bello 2018;Bigger and Dempsey 2018;Collard et al 2018;Scoones et al 2018). They advance militant, often economically protectionist forms of nationalism, insisting on the precedence of national self-interest and sovereignty over shared global interests and institutions.…”

Fragments of an anti‐fascist geography: Interrogating racism, nationalism, and state power

“…Alongside Ingram (), both papers also note the longer term and wider scale dynamics that placed him in office, viewing the “moment” of election as an outgrowth of deeper structural processes. While opening up figurative and literal space for the far right to organise and exhibiting proto‐fascist traits, Bessner and Sparke () nevertheless remind us that there remains a deeply neoliberal current underpinning so‐called “Trumpism” that represents a new variegation of governance distinct from “pure” neoliberalism or fascism.…”

Ethnography and the Making of “The People”: Uncovering Conservative Populist Politics in the United States

“…Finally, while most scholars would agree that both racism/xenophobia/Islamophobia and economic precarity play some role in explaining recent conservative populism, some point more specifically to the coming together of and manipulation of “identity politics” and economic decline. Scholars taking this integrated approach emphasize globalization and the combination of growing inequalities, working‐class precarity, and anti‐immigrant sentiment (Bessner and Sparke ; Brubaker ; Clarke and Newman ; Gidron and Hall ). For example, anthropologist Douglas Holmes (2000) explains that economic and cultural transformations in Italy and the United Kingdom created a “rupture in the sense of belonging” that led people to form new populist solidarities.…”