Overview

BREXIT: A victory for the far-right

Normalisation of racism and anti-immigration rhetoric.

The rise of far-right and right-wing populist parties

BREXIT: A victory for the Far Right

A United Kingdom EU passport sits on a European Union flag.. | ILLUSTRATION BY CHRISTOPHER FURLONG/GETTY IMAGES
“This is a very dangerous moments for Europe.”
DAN STONE

The dis-integration of Britain from Europe, was the question put to the British people in a referendum in 2016.

In the week before the referendum was to take place, a pro-EU British MP, Jo Cox, was murdered by a man later confirmed to be a white supremacist.

During the fatal knife and gun attack he was heard to be shouting: “Britain first, this is for Britain”.

Flowers surround a picture of Jo Cox during a vigil in Parliament Square on June 16, 2016 in London, United Kingdom. | PHOTO BY DAN KITWOOD/GETTY IMAGES

Britain would vote to leave the European Union, proving, for some, the acceptability of that certain kind of politics.

Britain’s exit from the EU was aided by a populist, anti-establishment xenophobia now coursing through the continent.

2016 saw Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats beaten into third place by the far right AfD in local elections, while Germany endured a year of violent attacks that spotlighted its refugee policy.

European Right-Wing parties hold conference in Koblenz. | PHOTO BY THOMAS LOHNES/GETTY IMAGES

In the same year, France’s National Front leader Marine Le Pen made significant gains in presidential election polls; Austria came close to electing a far right head of state and Italy rejected constitutional reforms for not being radical enough, prompting the resignation of its centrist leader.

The project to unite Europe that began in the wake of a devastating war, was now being challenged by populist stirrings in the nations it sought to bring together.

A sympathizer wears a cap in the colors black, red, yellow and a button that says German Chancellor Angela Merkel "must go", as right-wing activists gather in front of Hauptbahnhof main railway station before marching through the city center on November 5, 2016 in Berlin, Germany. | PHOTO BY CARSTEN KOALL/GETTY IMAGES

The rise of far-right and right-wing populist parties

A UKIP campaign placard sits on a table as UKIP leader Nigel Farage addresses a public meeting. | PHOTO BY CHRISTOPHER FURLONG/GETTY IMAGES

he prominence and prevalence of the far-right in Europe over the past few years.

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