The New Xenologies of Europe: Civil Tensions and Mythic Pasts

Abstract

This article explores transformations in the ideologies and political languages of two main European far-right tendencies: the ‘counterjihad movement’ and the European New Right (ENR). The ‘counterjihad movement’ emerged as a widespread, concerted series of anti-Muslim campaigns and activities across many European countries from the mid-2000s, and its ideas and activities are critically explored. The ideas of the ENR, a much older and mainly intellectual tendency, have re-emerged in significant ways in the activities and policies of several European far-right and populist parties. The two tendencies are very different in origin and ideology. However, considering them together can help understand the broader themes and shapes of the ‘new xenologies’ recently emergent in Europe, ones that have complicated associations with ‘racism’ and ‘fascism’. These areas are discussed within the broader context of an enduring political narrative of ‘European decline’ and an assertion of regional ‘ethnic’ identities against the project of European Union.