Who’s the Top Dog? Dogs as Representation of Identity and Masculinity in Extreme-Right Imagery

The expression of a masculine gender identity is crucial to the far right; articulations of a masculine image invoke ideas of strength, power, and control. The contemporary European far - and extreme - right use a wide variety of imagery to express this masculinity, from the more obvious like images of cage fights, gleaming muscles, and dominance over women, to more subtle images representing traditional gender roles and classical figures. It has been documented that one such way of expressing masculinity is through the companion animals one keeps as, for example, certain dog breeds – like the pit bull terrier – have been emblematic of masculine, and often violent, identities in popular culture. It follows, then, that as the extreme right emphasises their masculine identity through various imagery that they share online, so too would they through images of their companion animals. Examining how the extreme right approach shared images with companion animals can allow for an exploration of gender identities, particularly masculine identities. The online space provides an excellent platform for studying this phenomenon as these are curated images specifically chosen to present a particular image to their audience. While it is often thought that extremists, in this case far-right extremists, would associate with a masculine, violent, and strong image, in certain contexts their relationship with dogs seems to show a different story. Examining which dog breeds extremists choose to showcase, and their relationship to these dogs, can provide excellent insight into gendered identities – and the identity they would like to present to their supporters. Through an analysis of extreme-right imagery on Telegram, this paper examines images of the extreme right and their dogs to argue that they do, indeed, use images of dogs to present a specific image to followers - but perhaps not in the way that we expect.