Far-left politics

The definition of the far-left varies in the literature and there is not a general agreement on what it entails or consensus on the core characteristics that constitute the far-left, other than being to the left of the political left. In France, extrême-gauche ("extreme left") is a generally accepted term for political groups that position themselves to the left of the Socialist Party, although some such as the political scientist Serge Cosseron limit the scope to the left of the French Communist Party.[1]

Scholars such as Luke March and Cas Mudde propose that socio-economic rights are at the far-left's core. Moreover, March and Mudde argue that the far-left is to the left of the political left with regard to how parties or groups describe economic inequality on the base of existing social and political arrangements.[2] Luke March, Senior Lecturer in Soviet and post-Soviet Politics at Politics and International Relations of the University of Edinburgh, defines the far-left as those who position themselves to the left of social democracy, which is seen as either insufficiently left-wing,[3] or as defending the social democratic tradition that is perceived to have been lost.[4]

The two main sub-types of far-left politics are called "the radical left" and "the extreme left"; the first desires fundamental changes in neoliberal capitalism and progressive reform of democracy such as direct democracy and the inclusion of marginalised communities,[5] while the latter denounces liberal democracy as a "compromise with bourgeois political forces" and defines capitalism more strictly.[2] Far-left politics is seen as radical politics because it calls for fundamental change to the capitalist socio-economic structure of society.[6]

March and Mudde say that far-left parties are an increasingly stabilized political actor and are challenging mainstream social democratic parties, defining other core characteristics of far-left politics as being internationalism and a focus on networking and solidarity as well as opposition to globalization and neoliberalism.[6] In his later conceptualization, March started to refer to far-left politics as "radical left politics", which is constituted of radical left parties that reject the socio-economic structures of contemporary society that are based on the principles and values of capitalism.[7]

In Europe, the support for far-left politics comes from three overlapping groups, namely far-left subcultures, disaffected social democrats, and protest voters—those who are opposed to their country's European Union membership.[8] To distinguish the far-left from the moderate left, Luke March and Cas Mudde identify three useful criteria:[9][10]

• Firstly, the far-left rejects the underlying socio-economic structure of contemporary capitalism.[11]
• Secondly, they advocate alternative economic and power structures that involve the redistribution of income and wealth from political elites.[11]
• Thirdly, they are internationalists, seeing a causality between imperialism and globalization, and regional socio-economic issues.[12]

Other scholars classify the far-left under the category of populist socialist parties.[13] Vít Hloušek and Lubomír Kopeček of the Masaryk University at the International Institute of Political Science suggest secondary characteristics, including anti-Americanism, anti-globalization, opposition to NATO, and in some cases a rejection of European integration.[12]

March states that "compared with the international communist movement 30 years ago, the far left has undergone a process of profound de-radicalization. The extreme left is marginal in most places." March identifies four major subgroups within contemporary European far-left politics, namely communists, democratic socialists, populist socialists, and social populists.[14] In a later conception of far-left politics, March writes: "I prefer the term 'radical left' to alternatives such as 'hard left' and 'far left', which can appear pejorative and imply that the left is necessarily marginal." According to March, the most successful far-left parties are pragmatic and non-ideological.[15]

According to political scientist Paolo Chiocchetti, radical left parties have failed to concretise an alternative to neoliberalism and lead a paradigm shift towards a different path of development model, despite electoral gains in the 2010s;[16] when they were in government, such parties were forced to put aside their strong anti-neoliberalism and accept neoliberal policies, either proposed by their larger allies or imposed due to the international context.[17] This view is also shared by Mudde[18] and political scientist Yiannos Katsourides in regards to SYRIZA.[19]

Many far-left militant organizations were formed by members of existing political parties in the 1960s and 1970s,[20][21][22] among them Montoneros, Prima Linea, the Red Army Faction, and the Red Brigades.[21][23][24][25] These groups generally aimed to overthrow capitalism and the wealthy ruling classes.[26]

• Autonomism
• Hard left
• List of anti-capitalist and communist parties with national parliamentary representation
• Moonbat
• Ultra-leftism

Literature

• Chiocchetti, Paolo (2016). The Radical Left Party Family in Western Europe, 1989–2015 (E-book ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN 9781317221869. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Dunphy, Richard (2004). Contesting Capitalism?: Left Parties and European Integration (paperback ed.). Manchester: Manchester University Press. ISBN 9780719068041. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Katsambekis, Giorgos; Kioupkiolis, Alexandros (2019). The Populist Radical Left in Europe (E-book ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN 9781351720489. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• March, Luke; Mudde, Cas (1 April 2005). "What's Left of the Radical Left? The European Radical Left After 1989: Decline and Mutation". Comparative European Politics. 3 (1): 23–49. doi:10.1057/palgrave.cep.6110052. ISSN 1740-388X. S2CID 55197396. Retrieved 21 November 2021.
• March, Luke (2008). Contemporary Far Left Parties in Europe: From Marxism to the Mainstream? (PDF). Berlin: Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung. ISBN 9783868720006. Retrieved 3 June 2017.
• March, Luke (2012). Radical Left Parties in Europe (E-book ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN 9781136578977. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• March, Luke (September 2012). "Problems and Perspectives of Contemporary European Radical Left Parties: Chasing a Lost World or Still a World to Win?". International Critical Thought. London: Routledge. 2 (3): 314–339. doi:10.1080/21598282.2012.706777. ISSN 2159-8282. S2CID 154948426. Retrieved 21 November 2021 – via Google Books.

Further reading

• Hloušek, Vít; Kopeček, Lubomír (2010). Origin, Ideology and Transformation of Political Parties: East-Central and Western Europe Compared (1st hardback ed.). London: Roitledge. ISBN 9780754678403. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Holzer, Jan; Mareš, Miroslav (2016). Challenges to Democracies in East Central Europe (1st hardback ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN 9781138655966. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Liebman, Marcel; Miliband, Ralph (1985). "Beyond Social Democracy". The Socialist Register. 22: 476–489. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Marxists Internet Archive.
• Norwood, Stephen H. (2013). Antisemitism and the American Far Left (paperback ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9781139565806. ISBN 9781107657007. S2CID 153120694. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Cosseron, Serge (2007). Dictionnaire de l'extrême gauche (paperback ed.). Paris: Larousse. ISBN 9782035826206. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Smaldone, William (2013). European Socialism: A Concise History with Documents (illustrated ed.). Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers. ISBN 9781442209077.

Radical left parties case studies

• Kioupkiolis, Alexandros (March 2016). "Podemos: The Ambiguous Promises of Left-wing Populism in Contemporary Spain". Journal of Political Ideologies. London: Routledge. 21 (2): 99–120. doi:10.1080/13569317.2016.1150136. Retrieved 21 November 2021 – via ResearchGate.
• Katsourides, Yannos (2016). Radical Left Parties in Government: The Cases of SYRIZA and AKEL (hadrback ed.). London: Palgrave Macmillan. doi:10.1057/978-1-137-58841-8. ISBN 9781137588401. Retrieved 21 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Katsourides, Yiannos (2020). "Radical Left". In Featherstone, Kevin; Sotiropolous, Dimitri A. (eds.). The Oxford Handbook of Modern Greek Politics (hardcover ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 299–315. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780198825104.013.19. ISBN 9780198825104. Retrieved 21 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Mudde, Cas (2016). SYRIZA: The Failure of the Populist Promise (E-book ed.). London: Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9783319474793. Retrieved 21 November 2021.

Terrorism

• Balz, Hanno (2015). "Section III: Terrorism in the Twentieth Century – Militant Organizations in Western Europe in the 1970s and 1980s". In Law, Randall D. (ed.). The Routledge History of Terrorism. Routledge Histories (1st ed.). New York and London: Routledge. pp. 297–314. ISBN 9780367867058. LCCN 2014039877. Retrieved 3 December 2021 – via Google Books.
• Chaliand, Gérard (2010). The History of Terrorism: From Antiquity to Al Qaeda (1st ed.). Berkeley: University of California Press. ISBN 9780520247093. Retrieved 19 November 2021 – via Internet Archive.
• "Red Brigades". CISAC. Stanford University. May 2008. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
• Clark, Simon (2018). "Post-War Italian Politics: Stasis and Chaos". Terror Vanquished: The Italian Approach to Defeating Terrorism (E-book ed.). Arlington, Virginia: Center for Security Policy Studies. ISBN 9781732947801. LCCN 2018955266. Retrieved 28 November 2021 – via Google Books.
• Martin, Augustus; Prager, Fynnwin (2019). "Part II: The Terrorists – Terror from Below: Terrorism by Dissidents". Terrorism: An International Perspective. Thousand Oaks, California: SAGE Publications. pp. 189–193. ISBN 9781526459954. LCCN 2018948259.
• "Red Brigades announce end of their struggle to overthrow German state". The Irish Times. 22 April 1998. Retrieved 1 April 2020.
• Pedahzur, Ami; Perliger, Arie; Weinberg, Leonard (2009). Political Parties and Terrorist Groups (2nd ed.). London: Routledge. ISBN 9781135973377.
• Raufer, Xavier (October–December 1993). "The Red Brigades: A Farewell to Arms". Studies in Conflict and Terrorism. 16 (4): 315–325. doi:10.1080/10576109308435937.

• Media related to Far-left politics at Wikimedia Commons