BETWEEN NEOLIBERALISM AND THE FAR RIGHT: A CONCEPTUAL APPROACH BETWEEN THE GLOBAL SOUTH AND NORTH

• Grant number: 22/03604-3
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: December 01, 2022
• End date: November 30, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Political Science
• Principal Investigator: Sebastiao Carlos Velasco e Cruz
• Grantee: Lenon Campos Maschette
• Host Institution: Instituto de Filosofia e Ciências Humanas (IFCH). Universidade Estadual de Campinas (UNICAMP). Campinas , SP, Brazil
• Associated scholarship(s): 23/14352-8 - BETWEEN NEOLIBERALISM AND THE FAR RIGHT: A CONCEPTUAL APPROACH BETWEEN THE GLOBAL SOUTH AND NORTH, BE.EP.PD 23/07125-5 - Between neoliberalism and the far right: a conceptual approach between the global South and North, BE.EP.PD

Abstract

Two of the significant economic and political events of the beginning of the 21st century, the financial crisis of 2008 and the rise of the extreme right around the globe, especially the victory of Donald Trump in the United States in 2016, seemed to signal the beginning of the end of the "neoliberal era." Analysts and politicians alike have decreed the "death of neoliberalism" and the beginning of a new era. After a few years of these events, and with the advantage of a little historical distance, scholars today claim that those predictions were exaggerated and premature. The financial crisis did not shake the economic reform agenda, and the rise of the far-right did not mean a reaction to neoliberalism. On the contrary, some see this event as directly related to neoliberal transformations. While some scholars argue that neoliberal reforms created the perfect environment for the reemergence of the far-right, others point to links between neoliberal individuals and institutes and extremist groups. There are also experts who, going further, claim that this would be a new neoliberal, authoritarian and violent phase. The present project seeks to contribute to this current, essential and intense debate. From an ideological and conceptual approach, our research aims to understand if and how far-right groups used, incorporated, and/or resignified neoliberal concepts, ideas, and discourses. It is an approach that has not yet been explored and can produce innovative results. Second, the present proposal aims to establish a transnational, comparative, and still unprecedented approach between Brazil and the United Kingdom and seeks to understand dialogues, connections, similarities, and distinctions between the two countries in the conceptual relations between neoliberalism and the far-right.