ABSTRACT
The introductory chapter starts with a paradox. The rise of anti-Islamic activism in Western Europe, North America and beyond is cast as evidence of a resurgent far right threat to democracy. In contrast, the anti-Islamic initiatives themselves claim to defend democracy, the rights of women, Jews, sexual minorities and others – clearly at odds with the history of the far right. What should we make of this? As a starting point for mapping the anti-Islamic movement and investigate this apparent paradox and its ramifications on a broader scale, I pose the two following research questions. First, what characterizes the anti-Islamic movements’ structure and composition? Second, how and to what extent does the anti-Islamic movement incorporate progressive and liberal values? Answers to these questions are reached through analyzing: (1) the background and political trajectory of their leaders and intellectuals; (2) the official ideology of their organizations; (3) their organizational networks; and (4) their online mobilization of sympathizers. The findings presented in this book indicates that anti-Islamic initiatives in Western Europe, North America and beyond form a transnational movement and subculture characterized by a semi-liberal equilibrium. As the anti-Islamic movements’ roots and original set of ideas come from outside the far right, it represents a partial coupling between liberalism and authoritarianism from a liberal starting point. In other words, the anti-Islamic expansion is in fact liberalism that drifted in a far right direction. This demonstrates that it matters who the enemy is.
