The Problem with Studying Far-Right Metapolitics: Rallying Online Support Via Emotive Ideology and Collective Identity

Subsequent to the increase in support for far-right activism online, there is evermore research looking into its online content and social media-driven rallies for support. Yet there has been little research systematically looking into far-right narrations on social struggle, class and "critique" of capitalism that are utilised online in order to make racist and anti-feminist arguments plausible with potential supporters. The role of socio-economical aspects in the far-right's rise was debated in the social sciences, mainly highlighting fear and frustration caused by declassification and devaluation due to socio-economic change as a main cause. Unfortunately, this argument neglects the role these issues play on a metapolitical level: Specific groups of the far-right offer a theory on social struggle that is positioned against liberal politics, fans fear in potential supporters and effectively opposes the material and social interests of marginalised groups, whose struggles are devalued as pure identity politics. Therefore, in my contribution, I want to argue that an analysis into the metapolitical content mentioned above requires a broader scope than either focusing on individual and local aspects on the one hand (fear of/ frustration with socio-economic change), or organisational and opportunity structures on the other (social change, cyclical downturn), in order to understand how far-right radicalisation processes work online. Rather, I want to make an argument for the analytical use of the concept of ideology in this respect as it 1) is concerned with specific interconnections of different thoughts and arguments (on what constitutes social problems and solutions), and 2) the collective identities these thoughts allude to (in-/ outgroup). Additionally, this concept 3) allows for the analytical inclusion of individual (emotion, identity) aspects driving radicalisation.