We all know the famous Shakespeare quote about the state of Denmark.
As the results of Denmarks elections came in I now see foreign reporting on how the left and moderates fought off the (extreme) right.
Specifically there's mentions on how this is a win for those favouring closer international cooperation, humane treatment of all people etc etc...
It appears most of these articles project non-Danish concepts on Danish political reality.
->
1/4
Social Democrats, the party of the current prime minister, Mette Frederiksen won the 2019 elections in part as they shifted to an anti-immigration platform.
They won from the right-wing party (Venstre) then led by the man now described as a potential kingmaker (Lars Løkke Rasmussen, man with pipe) who pioneered those policies.
Since then Denmark has just shifted more right-wing and anti-other-people.
In some towns in our "rural" community openly xenophobic parties got 35% of the votes.
2/4
You don't notice it when you go to the large cities.
But you do notice it in the more rural (and still rich) areas like the one we call home.
Being openly xenophobic, even being openly racist.. is not a reason to be shunned these days. Instead it's a position you and your neighbour can "debate".
For those patriotism for "Danish things" is often a thin cover for nationalism, (open) xenophobia & racism. People genuinely believe in a Danish native superiority over "other peoples".
3/4
It's happening across Europe, and it saddens me that when I try to discuss this with Europeans, the response I often get is "this is happening purely because of Russian propaganda."
They're so xenophobic that their first instinct about anything, including their own xenophobia, is to blame it on foreigners.
@passenger @shantara @Pepijn Sweden has proper swedish troll farms run by the "we're totally not nazis anymore, since we hate muslims more than jews" party, the blueprint for it is copied from the russian troll farms though.
I wish we could be working away on the background level of xenophobia though, but after a long while of (too) slowly getting better, but for the last decade things are backsliding bad under a combination of domestic and foreign propaganda.
@shantara @passenger @Pepijn Yup. And they fade even more into the background now that the extreme racism that 15 years ago would be shunned in polite nordic society are now "reasonable talking points" in mainstream politics.
I despair a bit on how much work there is to be done to get things back to where we again can make progress on this.
This is not my experience. Yes, I read and hear about fear, helplessness and complacency.
I also see people building communities of mutual aid, locally and globally. Neighbours who help each other, bit by bit finding out where it hurts and what to do. Growing trust and faith in humanity.
Act, rather than add our opinion to the plethora of narratives. Prepare, don't scare.
>I also see people building communities of mutual aid, locally and globally.
Both can be true. In the 1990s the Dutch Socialist Party was a good example of this. On the one hand all about local capacity building for "all of us", and at the same time these same kind locals would fight against any facilities for asylum seekers as these would take stuff away from "us".
Mutual aid among kindred spirits is easy. Being kind to strangers is the hard bit.
The communities I see and experience do reach out and aim to be inclusive. This is a process, obviously.
It is vital to face facts as to the resurgence of fascism, and also fight back by acting, instead of amplifying doom scenario narratives. Howling w the wolves is doing the oppressors work. Why would you?
Oh, I agree, there are also a lot of people across the world building strong ties of solidarity and rejecting the legitimacy of their own governments, and that fills me with joy. I continue to be optimistic that a better world is possible.
Sadly it's not everyone, and my experience is that nowadays Europeans are far more fond of barbed wire around the borders than we Africans are.
..also, I see it as a challenge. Make the community/events/vibe so attractive, everyone WANTS to join.
And remember to enjoy it yourself, too🤍
Praise will confuse the enemy 🤗
https://music.youtube.com/watch?v=BadPZsYAdq0&si=c8A-AAYYNNnP9eMy
@passenger @shantara @Pepijn hmm, as a European, in most of the circles I move in it's recognised this is a complex problem. Caused by industrial decline, the loss of state capacity through neoliberalism, and a failure to neutralise right-wing narratives for decades.
I associate the "it was Russia" with a specific strand of liberals you also see in the US.
A bigger issue is that many left parties have concluded they cannot change opinion anymore, so have to ride the ride of nativism instead.
@thecasualcritic @shantara @Pepijn
With respect, after late 2023 I have become less enchanted by European and American social-democrats self-congratulating themselves about how their societies used to be good and how this is a recent problem caused by the problems of the last few decades.
Rosa Luxembourg (to quote a European) argued that fascism is simply the same European attitude to "the other" that has always existed, but now applied on their home soil. I feel that this is of course a simplification, but not an unjust one: even very Leftist European leaders like Mitterand have terrible records when dealing with non-White people, and no German government of any party has accepted legal responsibility for the Herero and Nama genocide.
So what can be done? I think a deep reconciliation with Europe's past and present is long overdue, because it's exactly that refusal to admit to past atrocities while trying to cling to past glories which empowers a lot of European nationalism. The longer it's delayed the harder it is to do, as is often the case. My people did it. Yours can too. I have hope.
Pepijn
Shantara
Passenger
webhat
maswan
✨Based Plant🎸
The Casual Critic
EaterOfSnacks