The Far Right Is Surging In Europe & The United States Could Be Next
The rise if right-wing politics should be concerning.
MikeDotta / Shutterstock In the last few months, many powerful, first-world countries have gone through polarizing changes in leading political parties and ideologies.
Most recently, the results of Italy’s elections have landed Giorgia Meloni, leader of the ultraconservative Brothers of Italy party, into the prime minister role.
Many have labeled Meloni as the most right-wing leader that Italy has had since the fascist dictator Benito Mussolini.
While this may concern the leftists in Italy who wished for a more progressive government, it should also be a notable concern to the rest of the world as it marks another addition to the rising momentum of right-wing ideologies in the world.
Is the world experiencing a right-wing swing?
In more ways than one, the world is experiencing a political swing to the right.
The United States, regarded in many ways as the most powerful nation in the world, has been in political turmoil for more than half a decade.
Since the rise and fall of former president Donald Trump, a far-right political ideology labeled “Trumpism” has started to take over the minds of conservatives who wish to use the momentum in order to pass their radical legislation.
The reduction of rights to vulnerable groups like LGBT people, people of color, and women, has increased over the years and is the result of a neverending back-and-forth between political control.
After countless attacks on women’s rights, abortion has become a huge political talking point in the United States since the landmark overturning of Roe v. Wade has threatened the lives of women all over the country.
Many analysts have looked at the ongoing midterm elections and claim that Republicans will regain control of the House while maintaining a minority in the Senate, leaving the future of the presidency in 2024 unknown as Biden’s approval rating seems to have stabilized.
Trumpism isn’t something that only affects the United States.
Across the pond, the UK and Italy have grown increasingly brazen when it comes to their conservative beliefs thanks to the momentum created by American politics.
After Boris Johnson’s resignation in the UK, Liz Truss, the leader of the British Conservative Party, was elected to succeed the role of Prime minister — continuing the conservatism of her predecessor.
Truss, who can easily be defined as a libertarian conservative, doesn’t respect the rights of trans people and has lifted the UK’s ban on fracking that has been in place since 2019.
During a speech at the Chatham House in December 2021, she said that the UK should embrace the history of the British Empire in order to move forward as a nation.
As for Italy, Meloni’s election into the role of prime minister spells danger for the future of the nation.
In an interview when she was 19 years old, she claimed that Mussolini was a “good” politician.
Many analysts have stated that after electing her, the country would swing back to a leading populist right-wing ideology.
Her views echo those similar to Trumpism and the UK — leaving a target on the backs of groups protected by “woke ideology” and immigration.
Claims that the Brothers of Italy party contains neo-fascist roots and links to Russia’s Kremlin are also a concern to world leaders — we don’t need another Putin.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is another example of right-wing politics taking the world stage.
Although many right-wingers condemn the actions of Vladimir Putin due to defense pacts like NATO or trade agreements, it’s worth noting that Putin’s authoritarian grip on the nation of Russia is rooted in many of the same ideals seen spreading across the world today.
Putin is fighting for the empire that Russia once was with the USSR, and while the military action he put in place to achieve that dream has been condemned, it ultimately spawned from right-wing beliefs.
It’s the same reason why someone like Tucker Carlson, host of Fox News's “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” has openly defended the Russian president.
There’s an international outcry for tradition and sticking to a nation’s values — which in the US means racism, and homophobia, in the UK it means imperialism, and in Italy it means fascism.
Try as they might, left-wing leaders do their best to condemn the right’s attacks on vulnerable groups and outright disregard for human life, but it doesn’t seem like enough.
This swing to the right in world politics could lead other countries to do the same.
It might give other people the confidence to share their outdated worldviews and spread their hate because someone out there will feel the same way they do.
There’s a theory in American politics that claims leadership changes move in a pendulum motion, constantly switching back and forth between Republicans and Democrats.
Maybe the world operates in a similar way, and right now the pendulum is swinging to the right.
Only time will tell if the world is capable of swinging back to the left before something catastrophic happens.
Isaac Serna-Diez is an Assistant Editor who focuses on entertainment and news, social justice, and politics. Keep up with his rants about current events on his Twitter.