Transnat_farright · Transnational nationalism. Far-Right Nationalist Groups in East Central Europe in the 20th and 21st centuries

Transnational nationalism. Far-Right Nationalist Groups in East Central Europe in the 20th and 21st centuries

The project “Transnational nationalism. Far-Right Nationalist Groups in East Central Europe in the 20th and 21st centuries” was led by Dr. Agnieszka Pasieka under the supervision of Prof. Philipp Ther. It was based at the University of Vienna, in the Department of East European History, and it was supplemented by the secondment at the Central European University in Budapest where Dr. Pasieka established cooperation within Gender Studies and Sociology Departments. The project examined transnational networks of youth far-right nationalist organizations in East Central Europe. The main aim was to highlight an aspect of far-right actors’ operating that until recently had not featured prominently in the scholarship on the subject, namely the fact that being a nationalist activist also entails a transnational cooperation and transnational exchanges. Moreover, the project aimed to fill the gap in existing scholarship by demonstrating the necessity to take into account historical dimension in the analysis of the contemporary far right and the importance of studying far right ethnographically, even if such a study entails a variety of methodological and ethical challenges. In light of recent developments – the rise of right-wing populist movement, growing political radicalization, widespread anti-immigrant rhetoric - the question of the support far-right movements receive is of big importance. The ethnographic study among contemporary far-right activists offers unique tools to understand the motivations of young people who join such movements and the appeal of nationalist narratives The project’s findings demonstrate that many young people who join the movements do not do it due to their beliefs or ideas they already held, but that what motivates them is search for “community,” for a point of reference, for friends and - sometimes - for clear guidelines and clear authorities. The question that remains to be examined, is, why are far-right movements more successful than left-wing groups in providing such an offer. The project’s historical component, instead, offers an original perspective by drawing parallels between nationalist activities against a multinational federative system, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the contemporary European Union or that between the post-1918 and post-1989 political turmoil. At the same time, it indicates the limit of such comparisons, reminding us about the specific sets of socio-economic factors that shaped the interwar era and that shape the present-day, and consequently forcing us to look for new tools and new vocabulary to describe the ongoing developments.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union