Understanding the Populist Shift

The results of last European Elections of 2014 seem to have confirmed the planned rise of labeled "populist" parties across EU. The leading place in Denmark ofDansk Folskeparti, in Slovenia of Slovenska demokratska stranka or Front National in France, the Golden Dawn in Greece, the high scores of United Kingdom Independence Party (UKIP) or Beppe Grillo’s Movement in Italy, the new MP’s seats won by the AustrianFPO, all these facts have been perceived as a turning wave transforming the face of the European Parliament, and challenging in some level the hegemony of the "big four" well-established European political forces that lead the Strasbourg’s assembly (ALDE, EPP, S&D, Greens/ALE). In this dynamic, the surprisingly weak result of Dutch PVV appears to be a single exception to the visible trend of EU political life: "populism" has become a major issue in many countries.

At the same time, Europe has seen the rise of extremist religious groups, as a response to securitisation processes that have taken place after the 9/11 (Lazaridis 2009). Both of these trends have produced challenges to the fields of fundamental rights and EU policy against racism, xenophobia and related intolerant attitude and behaviour. In addition, as Europe negotiates the current economic and political crisis, the weak position of young people (18-30), dubbed as the ‘lost generation’ with low prospects of finding a job, buying their first home, having a career, renders them particularly vulnerable to becoming a recruitment target for parties and movements of the extreme right. The bookaims to provide a critical understanding of these trends and recommend ways in which these can be challenged both in policy ad praxis, by using the gender-race-ethnicity-sexual orientation intersectionality approach.

Giovanna Campani, Full Professor of Sociology and Education, UNIFI, Italy

Gabriella Lazaridis, Senior Lecturer, University of Leicester, UK