Americans are in a fit of chaos. With the second inauguration of President Donald Trump came a sweeping amount of executive orders including actions taken against birthright citizenship and calling for unrestricted use of artificial intelligence (AI) which can jeopardize American jobs.
America, as evidenced by Elon Musk’s interference in German politics, is not the only country accelerating toward a far-right political system. After the inauguration, Musk spoke to a crowd of Germany’s conservative party, Alternative for Germany (AfD), and told supporters to move beyond their “past guilt.”
Musk first showed signs of an interest in a far-right Germany when he used an unambiguous Nazi salute after Trump’s inauguration. The world reacted with confusion that was soon clarified after Musk continued to allude to Germany’s genocidal past.
This proves Europe is also becoming more conservative, and many like Germany’s conservative party or France’s Republican Party headed by Marine Le Pen, were counting on a Trump victory to solidify a rapidly changing Western world.
This is not just about Musk’s recent Nazism, it’s also about a dangerous alliance with Europe and America, showing a global thought which shift could have disastrous repercussions.
But the question I’m asking is simple. Why?
Anne Applebaum from The Atlantic might have some answers.
In an interview for NPR, Scott Simon interviewed Applebaum on the rise of a global far-right. She claims that conservatism’s appeal to the average person has a lot to do with the two types of messages that are being put forth.
One type of right-wing party tries to dismantle democracy overtly. They do not hide what they are doing and plan on doing. They rely on strong connections to erode the media and the democratic system. A prominent example of this is Russia. When Putin was elected president in 2000, only days later did the military storm newspaper headquarters and planted the seeds for authoritarianism.
The other relies on a sense of nationalism and unites Europe, or America, in discontent about things such as immigration. When people are united against a common cause, no matter how fair and accurate that cause is about real issues. It is easier to come into power and manipulate people about a leader’s intentions. We can currently see this in countries like Hungary, the United States, Brazil and India.
This is all true and provides a powerful explanation for why and how conservatism is gaining a foothold internationally. However, a huge, and maybe overlooked reason, is the youth.
No one is taking the rise of the right in new voters seriously enough, which is allowing conservative leaders to take advantage of social media and podcasts to cater to young people. Le Monde writes specifically on how young men are turning more conservative than their female counterparts by a margin of 30%.
Donald Trump appeared on podcasts like the “Joe Rogan Experience” to speak directly to Rogan’s young male audience about political topics. He also “tried” to get TikTok back after first introducing a ban in 2020. Why? To create a narrative that young men can hang onto.
The same can be said of Marine Le Pen, the leader of the Front National, the conservative party of France. She has promised young people employment opportunities without having an egregious amount of degrees and qualifications. She appeals directly to youth via TikTok.
“Many observers credit the far right’s social media prowess for their success with younger voters…Jordan Bardella, the National Rally’s 28-year-old president and presumed successor to Le Pen, has proven to be a social media sensation in France, boasting 1.6 million followers on TikTok,” Time Magazine writes.
Naturally, this kind of tactic would appeal more to young men, who are no longer more educated or powerful as the women they now must force to consider their peers. This kind of anger allows for people like Donald Trump and European politicians to promise a reinstatement of the past, and possibly the utopia they grew up dreaming about.
Conservatives are quickly gaining traction on a global front. They are pushing the Western world to the far right with overwhelming speed. Their greatest supporters, and one of the main reasons for their success, are our peers. The more TikTok dances politicians do and podcasts they go on, the more young people will hit the polls and vote for them.
