We need to empathise with those we fundamentally disagree with. Is society ready for that? In a year that marks the twentieth anniversary of the London Nail Bomber’s campaign of terror, two recent terrorist incidents, the Christchurch Mosque and San Diego Synagogue tragedies, have reinforced the deadly reality of neo-Nazi conspiracies and sharply focused the… Continue reading “Preventing radical right extremism requires honesty, empathy and a whole society approach. Are we doomed to fail?”
How should we reconcile the historically low level of Americans’ negative feelings about Jews with the recent surge in attacks on Jews? The April 27 attack on the Chabad synagogue in Poway, a suburb of San Diego, California, set off alarms within American Jewish communities. The attack came six months after another lone-wolf assault that… Continue reading “Despite Recent Attacks, Anti-Semitism in the US Remains Low”
Countering five common myths promoted by the radical right, from anti-semitic conspiracy theories to political correctness. Britain, as a liberal democracy, clearly has free speech. Yet, there is a distinction between people using free speech to express themselves and inciting hatred and violence to others. The latter is something which governments have every right to… Continue reading “Radical-right narratives and how to counter them”
It can be difficult to separate the alleged watchdogs of freedom from the bloodhounds of the populist radical-right discourse. On June 6, 2017, Sweden’s national holiday, charges were filed with the Swedish international prosecution office against “a number of individuals in key positions inside Sweden’s government administration, media and in the country’s political establishment” engaged… Continue reading “How the Swedish Radical Right Hijacked Human Rights”
Racism and anti-Semitism remain problems in global soccer. At the 2018 World Cup in Russia supporters of the Moroccan national soccer team fought with fans holding Israeli flags at the end of Morocco’s loss to Portugal. David Whelan, the former owner of Wigan Athletic, was also accused of making anti-Semitic statements (He repeated a common… Continue reading “Anti-Semitism in global soccer”
The Jewish Octopus trope has 19th century roots but was most fully exploited in Nazi Germany. This article is dedicated to the memory of Paul R. Weinstein. A January issue of The Times of Israel reproduced, as an example of “recent anti-Semitic memes around George Soros,” a caricature of Soros as a tentacled monster hovering over North… Continue reading “George Soros Targeted By Anti-Semitic Meme That Predates The Nazis”
The idea of European civilisation is repeatedly evoked by a range of different actors within radical right movements in the West. Paradoxically, whilst much of the European radical right is resistant to the European Union as a political project, many elements of radical right discourse return to the idea of Europe as a homogenous culture.… Continue reading “The Narrative of European Civilization within Radical Right Discourse”
Is there really a new wave of anti-Semitism sweeping the United States? At first glance the answer appears to be in the affirmative. There’s certainly substantial – though fragmentary – evidence to support this response. Here are some manifestations of hatred toward Jewish people that confirm the existence of such a wave. Exhibit ‘A’ is… Continue reading “The New Wave of Anti-Semitism in America”
In the third of CARR’s series looking at the ‘Icons of the Radical Right’, Professor Hans-Georg Betz takes a look at the life and times of French radical right novelist, journalist and politician Auguste-Maurice Barrès (19 August 1862 – 4 December 1923). It is autumn 1891. A man is found dead in a cemetery on the outskirts of… Continue reading “Icons of radical right-wing populism: Maurice Barrès”
Roughly 80 Jewish graves were vandalised in Quatzenheim, France, this week. Eight British MPs left the Labour Party complaining of an entrenched culture of antisemitism. In the United States, where memories of the Pittsburgh Synagogue shooting are still fresh, vandals broke the windows of a synagogue in Brooklyn this week and the antisemitism scandal surrounding… Continue reading “Antisemitism: A Social Barometer of Historical Proportions”