In the last ten years, scholars have started to speak of a new wave of right-wing extremism, characterised by the emergence of an underground subculture of racist and frequently violent young extremists, with their own symbols, myths, and language. This new wave is characterized by its internationalization and by being native to the digital environment. While this wave of extreme right mobilisation has had relatively limited consequences in terms of ‘body count’, its danger stems from its capacity to encourage growth of xenophobic tendencies in public opinion, effectively achieving a banalisation or mainstreaming of violence towards their chosen targets: women, LGTBQ+, immigrants and non-Christian faiths, among others. 

Nationally, governments around the globe and especially in the West have reacted unevenly to this emerging security threat, which has coincided with a political turn to the right in the election polls of several EU Member States. But at a transnational level, current counter-terrorism efforts have sought to fight extreme right violence within the bounds of existing counter-terrorism legislation. These initiatives aim to prevent radicalization or to promote disengagement, via the development of individual and community level skills, such as self-esteem, critical thinking and inter-personal communication. However, the efficacy of such initiatives may still miss one of the most important developments of the extreme right nowadays: the solidification of a mainstream extremist culture online.

This Online Radicalization and Violent Right Wing Extremism course will cover theories and research angles on right wing extremism and violence today. This course is meant for students who would like to develop their expertise on topics of violent extremism and counter-terrorism, with a special focus on right-wing threats. Students with a background on Terrorism, Security or War Studies, and Political Violence will be able to profit the most from this course, but it can also be a good introduction into the subject for BA or MA students with other backgrounds. 

The design of this course takes a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of right-wing political violence. The assigned readings include scholarly research, journalistic investigations and counter-terrorism provisions. 

The course will first set the historical basis of current and relevant past right wing violence in Europe and the United States. Second, it will introduce the main theories regarding radicalization to right wing extremism in the 21st Century. This section of the course will highlight how seemingly fringe groups negotiate and interact with each other through online sites. Throughout these contents, the course will continuously refer to the specifically online dynamics of right wing milieus: how they navigate and exploit technology for propaganda, group identity, and more. The course will also continuously look at gender and men and women’s mobilization to right wing extremism online and offline. Additionally, the course will examine conspiracy theories and their intersection with right wing violence. 

In the second half of the course, we will chart the state of right-wing violence today, using case studies of specific instances of right wing extremist violence online and offline. Third and finally, the course will outline the counter-measures currently adopted by some countries, focusing on the role of soft preventive measures and content removal measures such as the European Terrorist Content Removal Order.

Assessment

This course will be graded based on four separate and mandatory components:

1. Student response paper (10%) 

2. Student presentation (20%)

3. In-class participation (20%)

4. Final written essay (50%)