What is right-wing extremism prevention?
Right-wing extremism?
I don’t have anything to do with that…
or do I?
Right-wing extremists are not always easy to identify,
because they don’t necessarily look
the way I imagine.
Not all are violent.
Some behave quite inconspicuously in fact.
I can run into
extreme right-wing messages anywhere:
for example at work,
in the family,
on a sports team,
at a university,
at private parties,
in government agencies,
at a day-care event for parents,
in the subway or at the theater.
A big danger emanates from
those on the extreme right –
politically,
but also in concrete terms for people:
as online bullying and in the form of discrimination,
violence, and terrorism.
Human rights and democratic values are rejected.
People are intimidated and terrorized.
That is a real threat.
The goal of the far right is t
o bring about a white supremacist, authoritarian society.
Right-wing extremism is still being trivialized.
For example,
because the far right
is seen as a fringe phenomenon.
Or because not everyone
is equally in their sights
or attacked.
Or because that’s not understood
as a danger for everyone.
But that’s precisely why we all
have to stand together.
Take a position.
Push back against right-wing action.
What does right-wing extremism actually mean?
In short,
the extreme right actually originates
in society’s mainstream and is an expression
of its anxieties and perceived grievances.
The elements of right-wing thought
include a heightened utilitarianism,
a belief in conspiracy theories
and attitudes like antisemitism,
racism, sexism, and anti-feminism.
Extreme right-wing thinking
doesn’t just occur on the fringes of society.
It is generated throughout the whole society –
in its structure, institutions, and culture.
And it is found in thought,
speech, and in everyday actions.
In right-wing extremism, these attitudes are bundled
into a hermetically sealed, self-reinforcing ideology.
From there, in turn,
it exerts an influence on the whole society.
Sexism is especially meaningful
in white supremacist thought and communities.
Thus, prevention can also
be addressed through gender relations.
What does it mean to prevent right-wing extremism?
Preventing right-wing extremism means
that we recognize discrimination
and the relationships of societal power,
domination, and violence;
that we confront them; and that we repress them.
To do that, it is also necessary
to build coalitions between various societal forces.
This strengthens an understanding
of democracy as a way of life.
What approaches are there
for preventing right-wing extremism?
Preventing right-wing extremism
can be functionally differentiated
into primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention.
Primary prevention addresses itself to everyone,
regardless of age or education.
So it doesn’t happen in a targeted way.
Primary prevention should keep people
from turning toward the right-wing scene
and ideology.
Stereotypes
and derogatory or discriminatory statements
should be avoided or unlearned.
For example, everyday racism
or remarks that trivialize
national socialism.
Additionally, it’s about creating
and practicing democratic alternatives.
For example in the way we speak.
Or offering spaces
for the empowerment of marginalized people,
and above all,
practices of solidarity and power-sharing.
Primary prevention works on this
with a lot of diverse methods and approaches.
To execute primary prevention,
I first have to gain knowledge
and learn which courses of action might be possible.
I have to sharpen my observational skills,
so that I can recognize,
reflect on, and categorize incidents.
Since primary prevention is directed at everyone,
in principle it should be granted priority.
In contrast, secondary and tertiary prevention
are forms of intervention.
The occasion and starting point for secondary prevention
are perceptions:
for example, that a person shows signs
of extreme right-wing attitudes
or is interested in the scene.
If a person is already getting involved
in right-wing groups or organized activities,
we can try to prevent their belonging and participation from being solidified.
Tertiary prevention is directed
at right-wing extremists
with a closed world view.
Those who want to get out are supported
in their attempts to distance themselves and exit from the scene.
Tertiary prevention presumes
that the deeply involved person wanting to get out
is open to a self-critical examination
of their prior behaviors
and wants to change their extreme right-wing attitude.
When is each prevention approach reasonable?
One doesn’t have to make
this determination on their own.
Specialized consultants can help.
These offer support in assessing
who you are dealing with
and in getting an overview of what has happened
and how the threat level can change.
Only in this way can those on site who could be potential targets
be protected and strengthened.
Who am I dealing with?
Is the person just interested in right-wing extremism
and oriented toward the scene,
or already involved?
A distinction is made between
the degree of ideological conversion and integration.
With that, as reference points,
we can differentiate between four groups:
on the one hand sympathizers and followers,
and on the other hand, activists and hard-core members.
It’s not always easy
to categorize and evaluate that.
How does the person in question express him/her/themself?
How does he/she/they behave?
In order to assess the situation,
I need background knowledge about the extreme right.
For example,
what extreme right-wing forms of organization,
identifying symbols, and lifestyles there are.
What activities and organizations
are there locally and in the region?
How is the person involved in them?
What are the places and strategies for mobilization –
both offline and online?
A central strategy of the extreme right
consists of looking
for societal connection points.
For example, they instrumentalize
the social problem of sexualized violence
in order to cast racist suspicion
on Muslim and black men as crime suspects.
Here right-wing women
are especially active.
Another strategy is community improvement projects.
to portray themselves as community activists (“Kümmerer”)
in rural areas that have insufficient social services,
for example by organizing tutoring services (“Hartz IV”)
or community improvement projects.
In their self-presentation,
the extreme right also makes full strategic use of the fact that women,
in the sexist conception,
are often seen as apolitical and harmless.
In order to see through such strategies
and sort out my questions,
it’s important and necessary
to work together with an independent specialized consultant
or nonprofit group.
When it turns out that,
for example in a sports group
or choir or youth center,
I’m confronted with an extreme right-wing activist
or hard-core member of
an extreme right-wing organization,
what then?
In such cases,
it’s necessary to eject the person in question
from the group or from the premises,
in order to protect everyone present.
Because extreme right-wing activists and organizers
create an unsafe atmosphere
and pose a threat for other people,
simply through their presence.
For institutions and businesses,
a house rule or statute and
a collectively developed democratic mission statement
can be helpful.
In that way such situations can be avoided
or we can confidently react to it.
With right-wing extremists
who are deeply involved,
we can’t work with primary or secondary prevention.
Especially in social work,
that appears to be uncommon.
With their closed world view,
these extremists can’t be reasoned with.
They are barely reachable through education any more.
With heavily involved right-wing extremists
one can only work with tertiary prevention.
This work can only be done by those
who specialize in facilitating people’s separation
from right-wing affiliations.
They counsel people
who sincerely want to get out of the scene.
If I continually
rub shoulders with sympathizers or followers
in an establishment,
I can work educationally with them
in the framework of secondary prevention,
always on the assumption that those
who are likely to be targeted are protected.
I can seek out conversation
and point out contradictions between
the extreme right-wing world view
and the lived reality of that particular person.
For example,
I can speak with the person
about the needs and expectations of masculinity or femininity
on the extreme right.
I can point out new possibilities
for interpretation and alternatives for daily life.
What’s important in secondary prevention
is possibilities for reflection in conversation,
relationship work
that is shaped by recognition of the person,
and continuously and critically accompanying them
with a clear political position.
In addition, the process
has to be oriented toward clear goals
that are regularly reviewed.
Specialists must have appropriate resources
available to them that can guide them
through the process in a self-reflective way.
The following factors
are the foundation for our actions
and our democratic mandate
in the prevention of right-wing extremism:
Self-reflection and a critical attitude,
oriented around basic civil liberties,
human rights, and democratic values.
Well-grounded knowledge
to be able to recognize and classify right-wing extremism.
A clear political position.
A coordinated approach,
for example from the leadership and team,
and that in the context of adequate working conditions.
Positioning and critical inquiry
may not work at first,
but one can come back to it and try again later.
The perspectives of those who are targeted
should always be the starting point
of factual and political discussions
and the benchmark of action.
Their experiential knowledge
stems from individual and collective reflection
on experiences of discrimination and violence.
In the assessment of a situation
-- with which prevention always begins --
this knowledge must definitely be taken into consideration.
A perspective centered on those who are targeted is important,
to be able to adequately protect them
and to work with an empowerment orientation.
Moreover it counteracts a fixation
or even fascination with the offender,
which can quickly creep in.
For approaches to prevention to succeed,
social criticism is required.
Opportunities and locations
for political participation are important;
plus a stable democratic civil society in digital,
urban and also rural spaces
with emancipatory self-organization
and social movements.
The networking, cooperation and political coalitions
with these people and forces
play a prominent role.
Lively anti-fascist protests
and sit-down blockades
exercising civil disobedience against Nazi marches
strengthen political positions,
community, and solidarity.
It is essential that in our everyday lives,
in educational facilities,
in non-profits or at work,
we take a stand and intervene.
Together and in solidarity
we can push extreme right-wing efforts back
and democratize society!
(Translation by Darcy Leach)
(Subtitles: Pudelskern. GmbH, 2023)