We must pay urgent heed to the three great threats that the extreme right-wing parties and their political programs represent for Europe. A rapid overview of the last ten years underlines the seriousness of the problem our democratic societies now face. When ideologies become diluted, when parties lose their historical frames of reference, when the differences between Right and Left are watered down, when the law of the marketplace carries all before it, and when social policies are abandoned, serious political debate is foreclosed. National politics and elections are dominated by emotions, by lack of self-confidence, by fear of the other, by insecurity, by infection of the body politic by the virus of victimhood. For years, the extreme right-wing parties have played on fear, the need for security, and the rejection of the other. These populist voices are the only ones heard. Citizens can no longer hear the courageous political voices that are prepared to reconcile them with genuine political action, with the task of governing, of prioritizing problems, and of taking decisions that may be unpopular in the short term but necessary to protect individuals and to promote social justice.
The silence of the “mainstream” parties is deafening. Where are the political figures, whether on the Left or the Right (moreover in the midst of the current global economic crisis), who are proposing bold new political approaches, who are responding to popular expectations on unemployment, security and cultural pluralism, without calling for the simplistic remedies that blame foreigners, stigmatize immigrants and fuel a new variant of “anti-Muslim” racism? It is the extreme right-wing parties that, more often than not, pick the political issues of the day, while the other parties fall into line. They may criticize the positions of the extreme right wing “verbally” or “ideologically”, but are unable to present a viable political alternative. Worse yet, the positions of the extreme right wing rapidly become the norm in the mouths of the other parties, whether of the Left or the Right. Political discourse on such issues as “national identity”, “integration-assimilation”, immigration or security has become frightening. While the extreme right-wing parties may not have appreciably increased their support at the polls, their ideas are clearly shaping the political agenda. Berlusconi and Sarkozy, not to mention Blair and Brown, have sometimes adopted positions that were formerly the exclusive preserve of extremist parties. In politics, public opinion must be cajoled; if no tangible results in terms of social policy have been achieved between elections, it is hardly surprising that politicians attempt to attract voters with measures that are outright sensationalist and populist. Short of policies and short of ideas, they incite citizens to vote with the blind, frightened anger of their base emotions, and not with the confident, measured wisdom of their intelligence.
For our democracies, the slippage is a doubly dangerous one. We are no longer in the realm of ideas, of the freedom to think and to choose, of citizen involvement in a civil society that prizes open discussion and criticism. Instead, we find ourselves caught up in a populist drift; entire populations are led by their fears and, too often, by their darkest xenophobic instincts. Hate speech, cartoon figures of black sheep being kicked out of the country, arbitrary detentions, camps where immigrants are concentrated, ill-treatment up to and including torture have once again become acceptable. Europe’s memory of its darkest hour is fading; old horrors once again become possible, thinkable. In its haste to bolster nationalism, in its obsession with security, Europe is losing its soul.
The ideas of the extreme right-wing parties must be met head on; we must develop critical, reasoned arguments based on facts and figures to counter the populist manipulation of impressions and feelings. We must refuse, out of principle and conviction, to lend a “cultural” or “religious” or, worse still, an “Islamic” coloration to social questions. New realistic and effective social policies must be developed, policies that combine the principle of equality with respect for diversity. Every country in Europe needs immigrants for its economic survival. Instead of brandishing the peril of colonization, viable, long-term policies must be drawn up—in opposition to the narrow focus on upcoming elections. Parties must reconcile themselves with healthy political practices, and reject the logic imposed on them by the extreme right wing. Far from faith in one’s principles, refusal to debate such parties is little better than a cosmetic device. As we look on, the extreme right-wing parties have achieved their aims: they can play the victim, while looking on as their outlook gains ground in the absence of any real opposition. They have won twice over. And we, defenders of the principles of democracy, have lost almost everything.
