Political extremism is often attributed to voter anger and broader structural socioeconomic conditions. From this perspective, efforts to counter extremist movements may appear futile, since such groups are seen as deeply embedded in the contexts from which they arise. But is this necessarily the case? To address this question, we examine the Papal condemnation of an influential far-right movement in interwar France.
En Europe, 20 ans d'activisme extra-parlementaire de l’extrême droite
À travers le projet de recherche européen de l’Observatoire des protestations d’extrême droite en Europe (FARPO), Caterina Froio et Pietro Castelli Gattinara, chercheurs en sciences politiques,
Alex Colston on Twitter / X
People are complaining about no good leftist analysis on the riots in France. Don’t do that. Read these instead.https://t.co/fkdOrmiygOhttps://t.co/QQZHYl0Fcahttps://t.co/H9atg8mrNA— Alex Colston (@re_colston) October 18, 2026
Les Néo-fascismes européens et les mondes arabo-musulmans
Stéphane François et Nicolas Lebourg, « Le courant nationaliste-révolutionnaire et les mondes arabo-musulmans, de Maurice Bardèche à Christian Bouchet », Bernard Bruneteau et Yves Santamaria dir., …
The new right: Anatomy of a global political revolution – European Council on Foreign Relations
The thinkers and ideas of the rising nationalist right merit the political mainstream's attention. Only by understanding them can it build a resilient counter-p
The war against Pope Francis
The long read: His modesty and humility have made him a popular figure around the world. But inside the church, his reforms have infuriated conservatives and sparked a revolt
France: Thousands of protesters wrongly punished under draconian laws in pre and post COVID-19 crackdown
Three years after Emmanuel Macron made an election pledge to protect the right to peaceful assembly, peaceful protest faces an unprecedented attack
The French Protests and French History
Whenever France erupts in protests, the question arises: how does French history help explain what is going on?
American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on A…
Twenty-five years ago, when Pat Robertson and other rad…
En finir avec le concept de pureté militante - Engrainage
Le concept de pureté militante fait débat. Le plus souvent il renvoie à une injonction à maintenir une ligne de conduite irréprochable au sein de groupes militants, souvent basée sur des normes de langage et de comportement. Un concept flou derrière lequel on retrouve de nombreux mécanismes sociaux comme des dynamiques de domination, d’exclusion ou encore d’individualisation des luttes. En parallèle, la pureté militante est aussi instrumentalisée. Elle est effectivement utilisée comme défense par les personnes accusées de comportements ou d’actions oppressives en affirmant que les critiques reçues s’assimilent à de la pureté militante. Ce qui induit notamment une certaine silenciation de la critique politique. Le manque de définition claire autour de ce terme empêche de nommer précisément les problématiques et de s’en saisir concrètement. Ce flou laisse place aussi à des abus d’utilisation voire de l’instrumentalisation.
‘It’s frightening’: How far right is infiltrating everyday culture
Extremist messaging now woven into music and YouTube videos, with one expert saying: ‘You can be radicalised sitting on your couch’
The thinking style that makes people vulnerable to extremism | Psyche Ideas
The people most drawn to ideological thinking and authoritarianism aren’t aware of what makes them so susceptible
Les récidivistes - AOC media
Agiter le chiffon rouge de la montée du nazisme reste une vaine superstition si l’on persiste dans les erreurs historiques – faire porter la responsabilité sur les classes populaires et le suffrage universel. Le parallèle avec aujourd’hui est à situer du côté d’une oligarchie soucieuse de barrer la route à la gauche, y compris sociale-démocrate, et qui ne tient plus compte du résultat des législatives. Il n’y a pas de déterminisme à la montée des fascismes : c’est le résultat d’un choix.
It’s Not Polarization; It’s the Radicalization of the Political Right
Polarization has become the master concept for diagnosing contemporary democratic crises. The notion denotes three features: symmetry between parties, politics as an opinion space where positions diverge, and mutual repulsion between opposing camps. Yet none of these capture current realities. Across democracies, the central dynamic is not two poles drifting apart but the transformation of the political right into authoritarianism, norm breaking, and openness to political violence. Social democratic and center-right parties tend to respond in the opposite way from what “polarization” implies: by accommodating rightward. Attempts to salvage the polarization frame with modifiers (“asymmetric,” “affective,” “sectarian,” “pernicious”) concede these realities but risk hollowing out the concept’s definitional core. These limitations reveal a deeper misdiagnosis: when one party turns antidemocratic and illiberal, incivility and conflict are inevitable—but they are symptoms, not the root problem. Misdiagnosing them as the central issue leads to viewing civility and compromise as remedies, thereby risking the legitimation of authoritarian actors. This article proposes an alternative lens: the radicalization of the political right. Developed in the study of extremism, the radicalization framework better captures asymmetric change, identity-driven politics, and the mainstreaming of illiberalism. It foregrounds identity fusion, threat narratives, elite entrepreneurship, and escalation. Concepts are never politically innocent and persisting with “polarization” risks both misdiagnosing and normalizing authoritarian threats.
It’s Not Polarization; It’s the Radicalization of the Political Right
Polarization has become the master concept for diagnosing contemporary democratic crises. The notion denotes three features: symmetry between parties, politics as an opinion space where positions diverge, and mutual repulsion between opposing camps. Yet none of these capture current realities. Across democracies, the central dynamic is not two poles drifting apart but the transformation of the political right into authoritarianism, norm breaking, and openness to political violence. Social democratic and center-right parties tend to respond in the opposite way from what “polarization” implies: by accommodating rightward. Attempts to salvage the polarization frame with modifiers (“asymmetric,” “affective,” “sectarian,” “pernicious”) concede these realities but risk hollowing out the concept’s definitional core. These limitations reveal a deeper misdiagnosis: when one party turns antidemocratic and illiberal, incivility and conflict are inevitable—but they are symptoms, not the root problem. Misdiagnosing them as the central issue leads to viewing civility and compromise as remedies, thereby risking the legitimation of authoritarian actors. This article proposes an alternative lens: the radicalization of the political right. Developed in the study of extremism, the radicalization framework better captures asymmetric change, identity-driven politics, and the mainstreaming of illiberalism. It foregrounds identity fusion, threat narratives, elite entrepreneurship, and escalation. Concepts are never politically innocent and persisting with “polarization” risks both misdiagnosing and normalizing authoritarian threats.
The Most Violent Police Force in Europe: Police Brutality in France — The World Mind
Contributing Editor Aaron Shires explores the rise in excessive use of force by French police forces and the disparate impact this has on racial minorities in France.
Very interesting mapping of far right in France—many of whom resonate with Kremlin talking points when speaking to a French audience. I wish someone posts a similar thread in English, giving more "so-what" answers to a broader, beyond-France, public. HT to @fugitivamel.bsky.social
LinkED
Après plusieurs mois de travail, nous lançons officiellement @Link-ed.info @Link-ed.info est un projet visant à cartographier la galaxie d’ #extrêmedroite à l’oeuvre pour porter au pouvoir le Rassemblement national. link-ed.info
