From Defeats to Polarization: The Dynamics of Right-Wing Chauvinism in Germany

From a historical-materialist perspective, the recent upsurge of right-wing populists across the globe is often explained as a reactionary, even proto-facist counter-movement to the multiple crises of global capitalism, among them crises of accumulation, wage labour, democracy, care, food, ecology and climate. Critical analysis, however, must move beyond such broad assertions. To do this, the paper will examine the dynamics of chauvinist forces in Germany in the 2010s. Its main argument is that the growing visibility of right-wing forces – densified in the electoral successes of the new party Alternative for Germany (AfD) – is the result of a dynamic polarization between different social forces. On a general level, empirical research by Michael Vester et al. into ›class cultures‹ in Germany shows that right-wing actors are rooted within two distinct ideological (class) factions, both mainly petty-bourgeois with some support in the under- and upper-classes: a ›resigned authority-dependent camp‹ and a ›rebellious-authoritarian‹ or ›frustrated-aggressive camp‹. The successful mobilization of these two milieus by the AfD and others can be interpreted as coming out of a position of defence and relative weakness, as reaction to a series of defeats, among them (1) the assertion of a ›post-migrant society‹ in Germany, giving greater recognition and representation to People of Colour; (2) an uneasy migration policy alliance between ›progressive neoliberals‹ and the liberal left; and (3) the partial opening of the German border for refugees in 2015/2016. However, for now the proto-facist potential of right-wing actors in Germany is checked by the strength of liberal and leftist forces. The paper closes with a discussion of three counter-strategies, namely anti-racist activism and practical anti-fascism, a ›new class politics‹, centred around common interest of different sections of the working class, and, most important, the building of real progressive alternatives to the neoliberal dogma of ›austerity forever‹.