A-Infos (en) France, Monde Libertaire - History Pages No. 121: Understanding the Rise of the Far Right (ca, de, fr, it, pt, tr)[machine translation]

Hamit Borzalan's work emphasizes that the far right has a long history. 
He traces its roots back to the 19th century to explain how nationalist 
right-wing movements developed within a counter-revolutionary framework. 
This framework was based on the deconstruction of the Enlightenment. 
Revolutionary right-wing movements rejected the egalitarian principles 
developed around the French Revolution. At the same time, these 
movements constructed a revolutionary project based on the concept of 
the "new man," an eschatological dimension that rejected both the 
"bourgeois" world, "social emancipation," and "liberalism," perceived as 
laissez-faire. They relied on an exaltation of the past while seeking to 
create a "new era" founded on order and authority. These principles took 
hold in the interwar period, first in Italy and then in Germany. While 
they seem to have virtually disappeared in their original forms, a 
number of aspects can resurface over time.

The investigation into the new generation of the far right reveals that 
while these cultural dimensions remain present, it would be historically 
inaccurate to establish a direct continuum between the two. The book 
offers an immersion into the lives of activists who entered politics 
around 2010 and who have since occupied a significant portion of the 
media and cultural landscape.

The book concludes with a description of the funeral of Patrick Buisson, 
the leading figure of the far right. The former Minute journalist, who 
became an advisor to Nicolas Sarkozy, returned to the fold and theorized 
a right wing encompassing everything from republicans to revolutionary 
nationalists. The entire elite of the new generation of the far right 
was present alongside the old guard.

The aim of the investigation is to demonstrate how this new generation 
of nationalist and identitarian activists was formed. It benefits from a 
dual set of circumstances. First, it relies on the rebranding of the 
National Rally (RN) by its new president, Marine Le Pen, who is shedding 
some of the party's old habits (tolerance of Holocaust denial, 
admiration for fascist writers, complacency towards Vichy, etc.). It is 
facilitating the rise within the party apparatus of young people 
seemingly without political baggage, of whom Jordan Bardella is the 
prime example. The second aspect rests on their media-political 
structure, of which the "Manif pour tous" (Demonstration for All) was 
the center and prototype. They marched together and share a common 
cultural background: rejection of migrants, hidden behind the label of 
Islam, and a strong demand for authority. This new generation, whether 
they come from the Republicans, the Union for Defense Group, or the 
National Front (now the RN), shares this common cultural background. A 
number of former UMP youth are joining this new-look far right. A few 
ambitious young people imagine that to seize power, the traditional 
right must break with its historical legacy of Gaullist antifascism and 
advocate for an alliance with the National Rally (RN). This is what 
happened in the streets starting in 2013 and continues to this day. 
These activists then gather in Parisian right-wing social spaces like 
the Café des Caves or Aux Soupers. For the most part, these young people 
are well-born and come from good Parisian or provincial families who 
have moved to the elite universities; most of them already belong to 
families considered right-wing on the political spectrum. Furthermore, 
they benefit from an unexpected media platform: the pronouncements of a 
polemicist, Éric Zemmour, who, like this new generation, shifts from 
anti-European sovereignty to denouncing immigration. Several activists 
launch media campaigns. After the sensational stunts of Generation 
Identity, they sought to seize control of the media. Having dabbled in 
fringe websites and newspapers belonging to the radical right, Valeurs 
Actuelles became their first prize. Then, with the help of Patrick 
Buisson, they secured prominent positions at Le Figaro and occasionally 
in other media outlets considered to be on the right of the political 
spectrum. In 2017, some of them founded a newspaper reflecting their 
ideology: L'Incorrect, which aimed to expose the right wing. With a 
barrage of posters and advertisements, the newspaper provoked and 
challenged certain media outlets receptive to this type of agitation and 
propaganda. They used it as a vehicle for ideological fusion. Finally, 
the media outlets controlled by the Bolloré Group became their 
springboard. Today, despite the tripartite division, these young people 
(Republican, National Front, Zemmourist) feel ready to take power 
despite the apparent divisions, which in essence resemble more a 
struggle for positions and tactical disagreements than ideological 
clashes. The authors, citing one of them, remind us that, fundamentally, 
they agree and their ideas are gaining momentum; the new leader of the 
National Rally is, in a way, their standard-bearer.

Walpurgis: Right-Wing Revolutions, 19th-20th Centuries
Hamit Bozarslan
Passés/composés 2026 448 pp. EUR26

Génération Bardella
Marylou Magal and Nicolas Massol
Gallimard 2026 266 pp. EUR9.50

https://monde-libertaire.net/?articlen=8909
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