This video is the fourth session of TNI's "Fractures" series, focusing on the rise of the far right globally. The discussion features experts analyzing the far right's ideologies, tactics (including the use of digital tools and propaganda), and strategies for resistance. The panelists explore the far-right's appeal, particularly among working-class populations, and its transnational collaborations.
Based on the transcript, Ailynn Torres Santano identifies several key shared narratives and themes in the political analysis of neoliberal authoritarianism and religious conservatism, particularly as they relate to the far-right:
Shared anti-progressism and anti-communism: Both neoliberal authoritarianism and religious conservatism share a fundamental opposition to progressive social and political movements, often framed as anti-communist.
Common use of "anti-colonialism" arguments: Both sides utilize anti-colonial rhetoric, framing progressive agendas (like gender equality) as foreign impositions rather than legitimate domestic concerns. The "gender agenda" is a frequent target, described as an attempt by foreign powers to recolonize nations.
Common arguments about insecurity, violence, and war: Both ideologies utilize narratives emphasizing insecurity, often linking progressive movements to violence and chaos, justifying authoritarian responses.
Shared references to freedom: While conceptually different, both sides use the term "freedom" to advance their respective agendas – neoliberals focus on economic freedom, while religious conservatives use it to promote traditional values and oppose progressive social change.
The central role of the fight against "gender ideology": This is highlighted as the most significant element uniting far-right movements and religious neoconservatism. This fight serves as a moral foundation for the far-right agenda, enabling them to challenge or redefine human rights frameworks, particularly concerning women's and LGBTQ+ rights. This discourse is presented as a defense of a "natural order," often linked to scientific truth and traditional values.
It's important to note that while these themes are shared, their specific manifestations vary significantly across national and local contexts.
The transcript indicates that several tactics and narratives effectively travel across borders among far-right groups, facilitated by various channels:
Tactics:
Sharing of Tactics, Techniques, and Procedures (TTPs): Far-right groups readily exchange strategies and methods for online and offline activities through digital spaces. This includes techniques for propaganda, disinformation, and the normalization of extremist ideas.
Building expansive digital ecosystems: Far-right actors construct their own online spaces (websites, messaging channels, encrypted spaces) in addition to using mainstream platforms, allowing for enhanced communication and coordination across borders.
Strategic use of live streaming and podcasting: This creates a sense of intimacy and allows for the subtle delivery of extremist messaging, making it difficult to distinguish from everyday conversation.
Extremist music: This is presented as a powerful tool for building communal identity, particularly among vulnerable youth. Genres like "Hindutva pop" are cited as examples.
Narratives:
Conspiratorial narratives with supernatural enemies: These narratives (traditionally about Judeo-Bolshevism, increasingly about Islam, the EU, UN, or WHO) create a sense of common cause across borders.
Anti-immigrant and racist narratives: These resonate across various contexts and serve as a unifying theme, attracting diverse individuals and groups. The "great replacement theory" is implicitly referenced as an example.
Emphasis on cultural preservation, religious freedom, and charity: This is used as a seemingly benign cover for promoting fascist or extremist ideas.
Weaponizing the language of human rights and democracy: This tactic involves utilizing terms like "free speech absolutism" to further far-right agendas while simultaneously collaborating with authoritarian regimes to censor dissent in other contexts.
Channels:
Social media platforms: These are pivotal for disseminating propaganda, misinformation, and extremist narratives, especially platforms like Twitter (now X).
Websites and encrypted messaging channels: These provide secure communication and coordination spaces.
Live streaming platforms and podcasting services: These create opportunities for direct engagement with followers and the spread of extremist ideas.
Mainstream media: Far-right groups infiltrate existing media spaces to spread their narratives.
The ease with which these tactics and narratives spread across borders underscores the transnational nature of the far-right movement and the need for globally coordinated counter-strategies.
Based solely on the provided transcript, Hindutva pop is described as a genre of music in India that has become a potent weapon for inciting violence. It's used to build communal identity among isolated and vulnerable youth by subtly delivering extremist messaging within a seemingly innocuous musical format. No further details about its specific characteristics or content are given in the transcript.
The transcript details several arguments used by far-right movements and religious neoconservatives to attack what they term "gender ideology":
Expanding role of the state: It's claimed that gender policies expand the state's role, imposing the moral beliefs of a minority and interfering in people's private lives. This is framed as a restriction of individual freedom.
Diversion of public resources: Gender ideology is sometimes presented as a tool used by corrupt elites to divert public resources.
Trojan horse for international organizations: The concept is portrayed as a means by which international organizations erode national sovereignty and push a "globalist agenda."
Threat to natural order: The fight against "gender ideology" is framed as a defense of a natural order that supposedly preserves human life and reflects scientific truth. This often involves promoting heteronormative sexuality and the traditional family.
These arguments are used to moralize politics, challenge human rights frameworks, and ultimately consolidate far-right power. The attacks are not simply about regulating gender and sexuality; they're about challenging broader societal structures and norms.
