Moral panics and authoritarian conjuncture: Masculinist affective identity politics of right-wing actors in Germany and Austria

Gender has been central to the framing employed by recent right-wing actors across Europe. Using examples from Germany and Austria (AfD, Pegida, FPÖ, Team Stronach, Identitarians) the paper examines the construction of a "masculinist identity politics" propagated by the far right and how it affects the recruitment of men. This politics is highly emotional as it is grounded in a moral gender and sexuality panic. Right-wing actors, parties, and movements use neoliberal transformations to create an affective atmosphere of crises, of loss of control and security. The most affected victim group are white men – challenged by gender equality policies as well as sexual and gender diversity. The authoritarian right promises to transform fear and shame into anger and rage as well as security, belonging and love (in the heterosexual family). This affective panic and the solution to crises aims at creating a new anti-democratic and authoritarian conjuncture (Stuart Hall, Lawrene Grossberg).