The aim of this graduate thesis is to analyze if and how the extra-parliamentary subject Akce D.O.S.T. influence the society and if the subject can be described as radical right-wing populist. Case Mudd's concept of the populist radical right was applied in the Citizen Association Akce D.O.S.T. to answer to these questions. On the basis of the Piero Ignazi' s theory silent counterrevolution follows the evaluation if the current conditions for the growth of the extreme and radical right-wing parties and similar subjects are favourable in the Czech Republic and if their growth could be expected. Attention is also focused on whether the economic conditions that have an impact on voters, influence their support for right-wing parties.

Today, two phenomena are growing; the constant increase in xenophobic hate crimes and the rampant presence of political and media representatives engaged in right-wing populist rhetoric aimed at defending the people from all threats. The question of how right-wing populist rhetoric influences the occurrence of these violent acts has only been addressed indirectly and partially in the academic world. This thesis tries to fill this gap, by proposing the following argument: right-wing populist rhetoric, through a process of continuous growth and affirmation, gradually creates an enemy who is ethnically “different” from the “native” people, leading to a social reaction and therefore to a consequent increase in xenophobic hate crimes. In order to verify this claim, an analysis of two periods of Italian history is conducted by means of Process Tracing. A primary case (1935-1939), focused on the Fascist Party and Mussolini with respect to two ethnic targets: Ethiopians and Jews. A secondary case (2013-2016), focused on the Lega Nord party and Salvini with respect to immigrants. The empirical results achieved provide good general support and suggest the need for further research, in order for countermeasures to be enacted by policymakers to avoid history repeating itself.

The rise of populism is one of the most significant political phenomena of the last decade. Although populism has been studied from various perspectives, especially in recent years, there is still number of unresolved issues related to the phenomenon. One of them is a question of the relation between right-wing and left-wing populist policies. In this context, the thesis deals with the case of the 2017 French presidential election. In this vote, both right- wing populist Marine Le Pen and left-wing populist Jean-Luc Mélenchon achieved extraordinary political success. The thesis examines policy content of the selected thematic areas that the candidates were focusing on during the election campaign. It specifically examines electoral programs and media statements of the candidates as the sources of their policies. The thesis provides an analysis of the policy content of individual candidates, as well as a comparison of the policies in the selected thematic areas. Its main output is a description of the common and different features of the pre-election promises of the two selected populist politicians.

[pt] Esta tese analisa o processo de formação histórica das direitas brasileiras, tendo como eixo de investigação a verificação empírica de duas hipóteses centrais inter-relacionadas. A primeira aponta que a união entre liberalismo econômico e conservadorismo no plano dos costumes, que caracteriza o campo da direita no Brasil contemporâneo, deita longas raízes na história nacional; enquanto a segunda identifica a internet como elemento-chave para a compreensão do avanço das direitas - incluindo sua reativação como fenômeno de massa – registrado no país no período posterior às manifestações de junho de 2013. Além de confirmar ambas as hipóteses, a pesquisa, fundamentada em revisão bibliográfica, discute como atores políticos de direita reagiram de maneira especialmente eficiente aos diferentes ciclos de desenvolvimento tecnológico e de difusão das redes digitais, que modificaram dinâmicas políticas na direção de uma intensa polarização verificada na sociedade durante as eleições presidenciais de 2018. Com destaque para o papel desempenhado pelo escritor Olavo de Carvalho na renovação da tradição anticomunista brasileira - consolidada ainda na década de 1930 -, a partir da popularização de uma leitura reacionária do pensamento de Gramsci influenciada pela direita dos Estados Unidos. A opção por uma abordagem histórica, que não perca de vista dinâmicas sistêmicas internacionais, nem a análise de outras variáveis de caráter interdisciplinar, busca dar conta do dinamismo e da complexidade do fenômeno, identificando, entre continuidades e elementos novos, vetores capazes de conectar a diversidade das direitas em uma ação política unificada. / [en] This thesis aims to analyze the History of Brazilian right-wing movements building process by pursuing the empirical verification of two main interrelated hypothesis. The first one points out that the union between economic liberalism and moral conservatism, which characterizes contemporary Brazilian right-wing, has deep roots in national History; while the second hypothesis identifies the internet as a key element for understanding the rising of Brazilian right-wing after the June 2013 demonstrations, including its rebirth as a mass phenomenon. In addition to confirming both hypothesis, the research, based on literature review, discusses how right-wing political actors reacted efficiently to the different cycles of digital networks technological development and diffusion, which modified political dynamics towards on a growing polarization seen in 2018 presidential election. A special attention is paid to the role played by the writer Olavo de Carvalho in the renewing of Brazilian anti-communist tradition from the 1930s through the popularization of a reactionary understanding of Gramsci s thought inspired by the right-wing movements from the United States. By choosing a historical approach, which does not lose sight of international dynamics, nor of other interdisciplinary variables, this thesis aims to understand the phenomenon s dynamism and complexity, identifying, among continuities and new elements, vectors capable of connecting the diversity of right-wing movements in an unified political action.

Abstract.  The purpose of this study is to investigate connections between Andrew Tate and right-wing extreme ideologies through fascist and feminist theories and how they spread in a digitalized globalization. The material is gathered from interviews and podcasts on YouTube where Andrew Tate shares his opinions. I have used theories and concepts that discuss sex, gender and heteronormativity as a social construction, as well as a theoretical framework that identifies tactics used by fascist movements to spread their ideas and increase their influence. The result of my study shows that there are distinct connections between Andrew Tate opinions and right-wing extreme ideologies. Tate uses the same tactical method as fascism to spread his message and gain followers. They also share the traditional conservative view on gender and gender roles where everything is based on masculinity and femininity in relation to one's biology. Both ideologies are based on a heteronormativity that lacks intersectional analysis and stigmatizes those who break the norm.

The purpose of this thesis aimed at trying to find out why the Sweden Democrats have increased their support, to become the second largest party in the Swedish parliament, while, the Danish People’s Party, has lost the majority of their support after being the second largest party in the Danish parliament to almost falling out a few years later. Is it possible for the Sweden Democrats to share the same fate? To find this out, we’ve decided to conduct this study using a qualitative comparative method, with a Most Similar System Design. The analysis mainly consists of two concepts to explain this phenomenon which are “Cordon Sanitaire” and “Normalization”.  The results of the analysis show that in Denmark, the Danish People’s Party’s views and policies on migration, have gotten normalized across the political spectrum. As such, they can no longer argue that they are anti-establishment, but instead, they have become a part of the establishment themselves. In Sweden, the Sweden Democrats have been kept out of power, with a “cordon sanitaire”, and thus their view and policies have not gotten normalized and adopted by other parties, and therefore they have continued to grow. An interesting aspect of this is that recently, the Sweden Democrats have gotten normalized and they are now a support party for a right-wing government, which we argue might lead to a similar situation as in Denmark, meaning that the Sweden Democrats might lose support in the future.

The new phenomena of “school attacks” has emerged in Sweden since 2015. Between 2015 and today (2022), Sweden has been a subject of four “school attacks”, whereas three of these attacks have occurred within a period of seven months. In this thesis I aim to gain an in-depth insight about how “school attacks” are represented in the Swedish national strategy against violent extremism and further, to distinguish whether “school attacks” have been securitized in the national strategy. To study this, I will apply the securitization theory by Thierry Balzacq through the methodological framework of a WPR (What’s the problem represented to be?) discourse analysis on the material consisting of the Swedish national strategy against violent extremism from 2016. The findings suggest that there appears to be an undermining of right-wing extremism and exclusion of the loneactor of extremism in the strategy’s claims regarding what is the most prominent extremism-related threat to the State of Sweden and Swedish interests. Furthermore, I was able to distinguish that “school attacks” were not securitized in the Swedish national strategy against violent extremism.

This essay intends to discover how a qualitative discourse of right-wing populismcan be seen within the Swedish parliament, by exploring how politicians in theparliament are using the "us against them" and if a scapegoat is created by doing so.The essay's key questions are going to examine the differences and similaritiesbetween the Social democratic government from 2020-2022 and the current centerright government compared to the opposition parties, between social democrats andcenter-right government on right-wing populist discourse, and what the media isnotifying about the political debate within the government. By doing so, we can find out important explanatory factors on why the shift inpolitics in Sweden has gone to more right-wing populist rhetoric, to understand whythis has been occurring in the Swedish government. By looking at the factors of whya rise of right-wing populism has occurred within different types of governmentparties and the type of similarities and differences they have on different parties’discourse about the framing of anti-immigration rhetoric.

As social media becomes an integral part of our daily lives, and groups seek to utilize this medium to facilitate activism, understanding the nature of these communications and the impact of the content on the individual user becomes a valid area of interest. When one then considers that extremist and terrorist groups have found social media to be an inexpensive and effective means for communication, radicalization, recruitment and member mobilization, the need for this understanding becomes critical. This research seeks to provide just such an understanding in its examination of Far-Right English Defence League and their use of Facebook during a period of increased activism and online growth. Important elements of this work include an understanding of the legal and ethical issues surrounding the collection of online content, particularly in extremist environments; the role of traditional media in their coverage of the group and whether the comments of the members reflect the group's mission statement of the characterization of traditional media; the ability to enhance data segregation and analysis through the development and use of specialized software; and most importantly the findings from the data analysis. Contained within these findings is an understanding of the intricacies of online participation in extremist social media. These include insights into overall traffic generation, the use of links within communications and their impact on the member traffic, and how the group narrative put forth by the administrator is reflected in the dialogue of the users. The most important finding was an understanding of individual user participation within the group and how, even with such an inexpensive and pervasive media outlet, activist groups still struggle to overcome the problem of participation. That this knowledge can be applied in a meaningful way in counter extremist and counter terrorism efforts was an interesting and satisfying development.

Anti-corruption movements play a vital role in democratic development. From the American Gilded Age to global demonstrations in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis, these movements seek to combat malfeasance in government and improve accountability. While this collective action remains a constant, how government elites perceive and respond to such agitation, varies. My dissertation tackles this puzzle head-on: Why do some democratic governments respond more tolerantly than others to anti-corruption movements? To answer this research question, I examine variation across time in two cases within the world’s largest democracy: India. I compare the Congress Party government's suppressive response to the Jayaprakash Narayan movement in 1975, and the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government’s tolerant response to the India Against Corruption movement in 2012. For developing democracies such as India, comparativist scholarship gives primacy to external, material interests – such as votes and rents – as proximately shaping government behavior. Although these logics explain elite decision-making around elections and the predictability of pork barrel politics, they fall short in explaining government conduct during credibility crises, such as when facing nationwide anti-corruption movements. In such instances of high political uncertainty, I argue, it is the absence or presence of an ideological checks and balance mechanism among decision-making elites in government that shapes suppression or tolerance respectively. This mechanism is produced from the interaction between structure (multi-party coalition) and agency (divergent cognitive frames in positions of authority). In this dissertation, elites analyze the anti-corruption movement and form policy prescriptions based on their frames around social and economic development as well as their concepts of the nation. My research consists of over 110 individual interviews with state elites, including the Prime Minister, cabinet ministers, party leaders, and senior bureaucrats among other officials for the contemporary case; and a broad compilation of private letters, diplomatic cables and reports, and speeches collected from three national archives for the historical study. To my knowledge this is the first data-driven study of Indian politics that precisely demonstrates how ideology acts as a constraint on government behavior in a credibility crisis. On a broader level, my findings contribute to the recently renewed debate in political science as to why democracies sometimes behave illiberally.