Researching the Far-Right of the 21st Century: characteristics, meanings, actors, and enemies

Abstract

This introductory paper aims to expose some of the main discussions of this special issue on the 21^st Century far-rights. We have structured the text in two large sections. First, we deal with the debates on the categorization and conceptualization of the contemporary extreme right(s). Second, we focus on the research of the actors and opponents of these (new) political parties and collectives.

We propose a dialogue based on the contributions of different researchers and research perspectives, from diverse disciplines, such as history, sociology, political science, psychology, anthropology, and economics, through various case studies. The main topics discussed in this presentation and the special issue are: the conceptualization and categorization of the extreme right and the distinction between political phenomena such as populism or fascism; the ideological production of different actors and groups of the extreme right through their speeches and practices; the research methods; the subjects and anti-subjects, actors and counter-actors that make up these movements and parties, as well as their enemies; the transformation of political systems and the liberal democracy due to these and other new political forms.