When: October 14-15, 2023

“The Far Right, Capitalism, and Class: Toward a Political Economy” symposium comes at a critical moment when an ascendent hard right has seized--or is seriously contesting for--power around the world. The rise of this new far right must be understood as an outcome of the crises of legitimacy that have manifested across the advanced capitalist countries. Resolving the crisis of the 1970s by removing barriers to capital mobility came at the expense of states’ legitimation functions and the collapse of postwar class compromises. While the more coercive states that emerged were able to contain surprisingly limited working-class resistance, growing contradictions lurked just below the surface. Working-class communities were devastated by ‘deindustrialization,’ while smaller capitalists unable to restructure internationally were increasingly squeezed by the intensifying competitive pressures of globalization. This proved fertile ground for the emergence of a ‘new right,’ which occupied the terrain abandoned by increasingly neoliberal social democratic parties. There is an urgent need for analyses that centre class and political economy in understanding the growth and threat of contemporary far right movements. The interdisciplinary symposium will bring together a diverse range of international participants including leading researchers, emerging scholars, and community and labour activists, to discuss and advance knowledge of the class politics of the far right.

 

New: Please join our free virtual keynote talk,

Injury to All: Labour Unions in Solidarity with Anti-Fascism and Community Defense Actions. 

Register Here

For inquiries on these events contact: jordan.house@ontariotechu.ca