Movement Parties of the Far Right
Understanding Nativist Mobilization
Pietro Castelli Gattinara author Andrea L P Pirro author
Format:Hardback
Publisher:Oxford University Press
Published:31st Oct '24
£99.00
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In an era of traditional political party decline, this book explores a new phase of nativist mobilization, in which street politics plays an increasingly important role. Pietro Castelli Gattinara and Andrea Pirro delve into the hybrid and transitional nature of far-right movement parties, i.e. collective actors that contest elections like political parties and mobilize in the protest arena like social movements. Movement parties offer an exceptional object of study since they challenge the conventional distinction between institutional and non-institutional politics. Examining the 'production structure' of ten movement parties across nine European countries, the authors identify key factors that affect their engagement in protest activity. They address the organizational capacity, decision-making processes, and external mobilization of these collective actors using unique empirical material, including quantitative data on far-right protest mobilization spanning over a decade, protest network visualizations, and qualitative interviews with high-ranking officials. The book provides fresh insights into how the far right spreads its influence and relates to non-institutional politics, making it essential reading for anyone concerned about the way in which nativist collective actors transform society from the ground up. A compelling study looking at the relationship between electoral politics and grassroots activism, Movement Parties of the Far Right illuminates the complex organizational and strategic choices underlying far-right mobilization.
Finally! A book that explains why the far right has gained traction across Europe, and where it is headed. Scholars, activists, and anyone concerned about the future of democracy needs to read Castelli Gattinara and Pirro's accessible and well-researched study. By showing how the far right builds momentum by a reinforcing combination of electoral goals and grassroots protest politics, they reveal the dangerous breadth of its networks across national borders and arenas of action. * Kathleen Blee, University of Pittsburgh, co-author of Out of Hiding: Extremist White Supremacy and How It Can Be Stopped *
While research on the far right has tended to focus on either political parties or their violent performances, in this much needed volume, Pietro Castelli Gattinara and Andrea Pirro prove the capacity of concepts and theories developed in social movement studies to illuminate how electoral and protest activities are used to promote a nativist agenda. Based on solid knowledge and a comparative research design, this is a must-read contribution for the understanding of movement parties of the far right and their main challenge to European democracies. * Donatella della Porta, Scuola Normale Superiore, author of Regressive Movements in Times of Emergency *
This book argues that the far right has entered a new phase of political contention - a phase in which protest mobilization is increasingly important and articulated by movement parties, i.e., organizations that oscillate between grassroots engagement and electoral participation. It provides a wealth of information on the organizational capacity, internal structuring, and external embedding of ten such parties from across Europe based on impressive original data. The dialogue between the study of far-right parties and social movements and the intersection between contentious and party politics helps us understand the development of the contemporary far right and its impact on large-scale social and political change * Hanspeter Kriesi, European University Institute, co-author of Coming to Terms with the European Refugee Crisis *
Movement Parties of the Far Right breaks through the election-centric study of far-right party politics and nativist mobilization. It offers a theoretical and empirical framework that is innovative and inspirational, by integrating the rich subfields of party politics and social movements, which helps us gain a more comprehensive understanding of the ever-evolving far right. An academic gamechanger! * Cas Mudde, University of Georgia, author of The Far Right Today *
ISBN: 9780198892083
Dimensions: 240mm x 162mm x 20mm
Weight: 554g
272 pages