The far right as social movement

Abstract

The literature on the far right is trying to connect with social movement studies. Scholars from different social scientific backgrounds are increasingly acknowledging that extra-parliamentary grassroots activism is part of the alliance and conflict structure of nativist collective actors. The recent rise in far-right street politicsor, precisely, its re-emergence with seemingly different clothesshould encourage the study of the inter-relations between party and non-party collective actors. As a case in point, the far right not only includes political parties geared towards elections and public office but also social movements or 'networks of networks' that aim to mobilise public support, and a conglomeration of subcultural groups and groupuscules. By putting forward a three-part metric to analyse mobilisation factors at the macro, meso, and micro levels, this piece and the Special Issue it introduces bring the (inter-)relations between far-right parties, movements, and subcultures frontstage, and elaborate on nativist collective action across different arenas of contention.

Radical right politics in East and West: Distinctive yet equivalent

“…The distinction is naturally idea‐typical, particularly given the character of the RR as a collective actor (cf. Minkenberg, ; Castelli Gattinara & Pirro ), where central and local party organizations more or less closely interact in complex networks with diverse protest movements, think‐tanks, and grass‐roots associations. Noting the differentiation is nonetheless important to understand the insidious character of RR politics that tactically undercut the liberal normative framework of democracy from within (cf.…”

“…Instead, it is necessary for future analyses to account for active (nativist, populist, and other) legitimation frames of illiberal policies by respective governments, the extent of their resonance and active influence on broader societal attitudes. We concurrently need more insights on the RR as a collective actor (Castelli Gattinara & Pirro, ; Minkenberg, ) and the impact of nativist grass‐roots associations on societal mainstreaming of RR politics. It is equally important to comparatively account for the role of adversarial political agency in countering the discursive influence and policy impact of RR politics, assessing factors for failure and success of counter‐narratives articulated by party politics and most especially by liberal democratic grass‐roots movements and civic society.…”

Ballots and barricades enhanced: far‐right ‘movement parties’ and movement‐electoral interactions

“…As far as nativist collective actors are concerned, a relatively small but growing set of studies have tackled the standing divide between the scholarships on social movements and party politics (Castelli Gattinara and Pirro ). Whilst some authors focused on the organisation and institutionalisation of far‐right movement parties (e.g.…”

“…the contemporary far right (e.g. Castelli Gattinara and Pirro ; Koopmans and Rucht ; Minkenberg ) . It is precisely within the far‐right scholarship that new attention has been called to grassroots mobilisations, and the widening chasm between parties and politics (Mudde ).…”

Far‐Right Framing Processes on Social Media: The Case of the Canadian and Quebec Chapters of Soldiers of Odin

“…IN RECENT YEARS, several western countries have seen a resurgence of far‐right street politics (Caiani, della Porta, and Wagemann 2012). While anti‐immigration movements and protests do not constitute a new phenomenon (Blee 2017; Koopmans 1996), the 2015–2016 so‐called “refugee crisis” triggered a new wave of social unrest and identity‐based mobilizations (Castelli Gattinara and Pirro 2019; Mareš and Bjørgo 2019). Canada is no exception: the country has witnessed an increase in visibility of far‐right groups and activities, one that has been defined by the Canadian Security Intelligence Service as “a growing threat nationwide” (Perry and Scrivens 2018:170).…”