Echoes of Fascism?:Social Exclusion and Radicalisation among Muslim Minorities and Ethnic Majorities in Northwestern Europe

Abstract

This paper examines how social exclusion and relative deprivation foster extremist ideologies among Muslim minorities and ethnic majorities in four Northwestern European countries and to what extent theories of fascism can help to unravel these contemporary trends. We identify three key findings based on extensive interview data from the DRIVE project. First, minority and majority participants express ideological positions sharing structural similarities with historical fascism, including perceptions of cultural threat, economic grievances, and desires for societal transformation. Second, these elements manifest distinctly: for ethnic majorities as nativist sentiments and calls for cultural homogeneity, and for Muslim minorities as totalising religious-political worldviews rejecting liberal pluralism. Third, social exclusion creates ‘cognitive openings’ for extremist narratives in both populations, but through different pathways: majorities through perceived cultural threats and economic insecurity, minorities through discrimination and cultural alienation. Here, we see critical divergences from theories of fascism, with minorities facing different processes as the result of exclusion from majority society. Ultimately, use of such theories has notable limitations, but helps to track different patterns of social exclusion and the normalisation of exclusionary ideologies. Our analysis bridges fascism studies and radicalisation research while highlighting the increasing significance of relative deprivation in driving contemporary patterns of extremism.