Ethnography Of The Far Right

Can nosotros understand the dynamics of far-right extremism without agreement far-right extremists? Probably not; it seems clear nosotro...

Can nosotros understand the dynamics of far-right extremism without agreement far-right extremists? Probably not; it seems clear nosotros demand to take away hold a much to a greater extent than "micro" agreement of the actors than nosotros currently take away hold if nosotros are to understand these movements in addition to thence antithetical to the values of liberal democracy. And soundless at that topographic point isn't much of a literature on this subject.

An of import exception is a 2007 special number of the Journal of Contemporary Ethnography, curated yesteryear Kathleen Blee (link). This book brings together several ethnographic studies of extremist groups, in addition to it makes for real interesting reading. Kathleen Blee is a pioneer inwards this plain in addition to is the writer of Inside Organized Racism: Women inwards the Hate Movement (2002). She writes inwards Inside Organized Racism:

Intense, activist racism typically does non arise on its own; it is learned inwards racist groups. These groups promote ideas radically dissimilar from the racist attitudes held yesteryear many whites. They learn a complex in addition to contradictory mix of hatred for enemies, belief inwards conspiracies, in addition to allegiance to an imaginary unified race of "Aryans." (3)

One of Blee's fundamental contributions has been to highlight the increasingly of import in addition to independent move played yesteryear women inwards right-wing extremist movements inwards the U.S. of A. of America in addition to Europe.

The JCE number includes valuable studies of right-wing extremist groups inwards India, France, Germany, the Netherlands, in addition to Scandinavia. And each of the essays is good worth reading, including peculiarly Blee's expert introduction. Here is the tabular array of contents:

Key questions concerning the mechanisms of mobilization arise inwards almost all the essays. What are the mechanisms through which novel adherents are recruited? What psychological in addition to emotional mechanisms are inwards play that maintain loyalists involved inwards the movement? Contributors to this book detect a highly heterogeneous laid of circumstances leading to extremist activism. Blee argues that an internalist approach is needed to let us to take away hold a to a greater extent than nuanced agreement of the social in addition to personal dynamics of extremist movements. What she way yesteryear externalist hither is the thought that at that topographic point are societal forces in addition to "risk factors" that contribute to the emergence of abhor in addition to racism inside a population, in addition to that these factors tin move studied inwards a full general way. An internalist approach, yesteryear contrast, aims at discovering the motives in addition to causes of extremist appointment through written report of the actors themselves, inside specific social circumstances.

But it is problematic to work information garnered inwards externalist studies to pull conclusions virtually micromobilization since it is non possible to infer the motivations of activists from the external weather condition inwards which the grouping emerged. Because people are drawn to far-right movements for a diversity of reasons that take away hold piffling connectedness to political ideology (Blee 2002)—including a search for community, affirmation of masculinity, in addition to personal loyalties— what motivates someone to bring together an anti-immigrant group, for example, might—or mightiness not—be animus toward immigrants. (120)

Based on interviews, participant-observation, in addition to life-history methods, contributors detect a mix of factors leading to the pick of extremist involvement: adolescent hyper-masculinity, a wishing to belong, a history of bullying in addition to abuse, equally good equally social exposure to adult abhor activists. But this piece of work is to a greater extent than hard than many other kinds of ethnographic enquiry because of the secrecy, suspiciousness, in addition to danger associated amongst these kinds of activism:

Close-up or “internalist” studies of far-right movements tin supply a ameliorate agreement of the workings of far-right groups in addition to the beliefs in addition to motivations of their activists in addition to supporters, but such studies are rare because information from interviews amongst members, observations of grouping activities, in addition to internal documents are hard to obtain.... Few scholars wishing to invest the considerable fourth dimension or to works life the rapport necessary for close-up studies of those they regard equally inexplicable in addition to repugnant, inwards add-on to unsafe in addition to difficult. Yet, equally the articles inwards this book demonstrate, internalist studies of the far correct tin give away otherwise obscured in addition to of import features of extreme rightist political mobilization. (121-122)

Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 few snippets volition give roughly flavor of the volume. Here is Michael Kimmel's description of roughly of the immature men in addition to boys attracted to the neo-Nazi motion inwards Sweden:

Insecure in addition to lonely at twelve years old, Edward started hanging out amongst skinheads because he “moved to a novel town, knew nobody, in addition to needed friends.” Equally lonely in addition to utterly alienated from his distant father, Pelle met an older skinhead who took him nether his fly in addition to became a sort of mentor. Pelle was a “street hooligan” hanging out inwards street gangs, brawling in addition to drinking amongst other gangs. “My grouping genuinely looked downward on the neo-Nazis,” he says, because “they weren’t existent fighters.” “All the guys had an insecure move equally a man,” says Robert. “They were all asking ‘who am I?’” ...

Already feeling marginalized in addition to oftentimes targeted, the boys in addition to men described themselves equally “searchers” or “seekers,” kids looking for a grouping amongst which to set in addition to where they would experience they belonged. “When you lot move inwards puberty, it’s similar you lot take away hold to take away a branch,” said i ex-Nazi. “You take away hold to take away betwixt beingness a Nazi, anti-Nazi, punk or hip- hopper—in today’s society, you lot only can’t take away to move neutral” (cited inwards Wahlstrom 2001, 13-14). ...

For others, it was a sense of alienation from set unit of measurement in addition to peculiarly the wishing to rebel against their fathers. “Grown-ups oftentimes forget an of import element of Swedish racism, the emotional conviction,” says Jonas Hallen (2000). “If you lot take away hold been beaten, threatened, in addition to stolen from, you lot won’t hear to facts in addition to numbers.”(209-210)

Here is Meera Sehgal's description of far-right Hindu nationalist preparation camps for immature girls inwards India:

The overall atmosphere of this army camp in addition to the Samiti’s camps inwards full general was stiff in addition to authoritarian, amongst a potent emphasis on discipline. ... Influenza A virus subtype H5N1 number of girls fell sick amongst diarrhea, exhaustion, in addition to rut stroke. Every 24-hour interval at to the lowest degree 5 to 10 girls could move seen crying, wanting to acquire home. They pleaded amongst their city’s local Samiti leaders, army camp instructors, in addition to organizers to move allowed to telephone telephone their parents, but were non allowed to practice so. ... Neither students nor instructors were allowed to acquire sufficient residuum or decent food.

The preparation was at a frenetic mensuration inwards physically trying conditions. Participants were kept awake in addition to physically in addition to mentally engaged from dawn to belatedly night. Approximately 4 hours a 24-hour interval were devoted to physical training; 5 hours to ideological indoctrination through lectures, grouping discussions, in addition to rote memorization; in addition to 2 hours to indoctrination through cultural programming similar songs, stories, plays, jokes, in addition to skits. Many girls in addition to women were consequently presently physically exhausted, in addition to soundless were forced to continue. The systematic deprivation of adequate residuum in addition to nutrient may take away hold been a deliberate ploy of the army camp organizers to trim the chances of dissent since time, energy, initiative, in addition to planning are needed to develop a collective sense of grievance.

Indoctrination, which was the Samiti’s get-go priority, ranged from classroom lectures in addition to pocket-size in addition to large grouping discussions led yesteryear dissimilar instructors, to nightly cultural programs where skits, storytelling, songs, in addition to chants were taught yesteryear the instructors in addition to seasoned activists, based on the lives of diverse “Hindu” women, both mythical in addition to historical. (170)

And hither is Fabian Virchow's description of the emotional ability of music in addition to spectacle at a neo-Nazi rally inwards Germany:

Festivals are first-class opportunities for far-right groups to spread the tidings virtually their successes to like-minded activists in addition to sympathizers, since visitors come upward from equally far away equally Italia to encounter White Power music bands. In the festival mentioned above, a folk-dance deed inwards the afternoon attracted solely roughly hundred spectators, but eve performances yesteryear the U.S. band Youngland drew a large crowd that pushed to the forepart of the stage, leaving solely express infinite for burly skinheads indulging inwards pogo dancing. The music created a ritual closeness in addition to attachment amid the audience, shaping the emotions in addition to aggression of the like-minded crowd, initially inwards a playful way, but i that switched into brutality a few moments later. 

The aggression of White Power music is evident inwards the messages of its songs, which are either confessing, demonstrating self-assertion against what is perceived equally totally hostile surroundings, or requesting activeness (Meyer 1995). Using Heavy Metal or Oi Punk equally its musical basis, White Power music non solely attracts those who encounter themselves equally business office of the same political motion equally the musicians, but also serves equally i of the most of import tools for recruiting novel adherents to the politics of the far correct (Dornbusch in addition to Raabe 2002). 

Since the festival I visited takes set solely i time a year, in addition to because performances of White Power bands are organized clandestinely inwards most cases in addition to are oftentimes disrupted yesteryear the police, the far-right motion needs additional events to shape in addition to sustain its collective identity. As the far correct in addition to the NPD in addition to neo-Nazi groupuscules inwards detail regard themselves equally a “movement of action,” it is no surprise that rallies play an of import move inwards this effort. (151)

Each of these essays is based on first-hand observation in addition to interaction, in addition to they give roughly insight into the psychological forces playing on the participants equally good equally the mobilizational strategies used yesteryear the leaders of these kinds of movements. The articles published hither offering a expert cross-section of the ways inwards which ethnographic methods tin move brought to behavior upon the phenomenon of extremist right-wing activism. And because the studies are drawn from 5 quite dissimilar national contexts (Sweden, Germany, Netherlands, India, France), it is intriguing to encounter roughly of the same mechanisms in addition to dynamics inwards play inwards creating in addition to sustaining an extremist movement. The importance of surgery in addition to music inwards eliciting loyal participation from immature adherents comes upward inwards the articles virtually Germany, Sweden, in addition to India. Likewise the importance of the emotional needs of boys equally they approach manhood, in addition to the hyper-masculine themes of violence in addition to brutality inwards the neo-Nazi organizations that appeal to them, recurs inwards several of the essays.

Along with KA Kreasap, Kathleen Blee is also the writer of a 2010 review article on right-wing extremist movements inwards Annual Reviews of Sociology (link). These are the kinds of hate-based organizations in addition to activists tracked yesteryear the Southern Poverty Law Center (link), in addition to that seem to move to a greater extent than visible than e'er earlier during the electrical flow presidential campaign. The essay pays attending to the enquiry of the motivations in addition to "risk factors" that atomic number 82 people to bring together right-wing movements. Blee in addition to Kreasap debate that the motivations in addition to circumstances of mobilization into right-wing organizations are substantially to a greater extent than heterogeneous than a uncomplicated floor leading from racist attitudes to racist mobilization would suggest. They debate that antecedent racist ideology is indeed a factor, but that music, culture, social media, in addition to continent social networks also play pregnant causal roles.