From Tiki Torches to Flares (Check out the pics)

Tiki Torches to Flares: White Supremacy is an International Movement

On Saturday November 11th thousands of far right nationalists (white supremacists) marched through Warsaw Poland carrying flares in ‘celebration’ of their independence day. The white supremacist movement and the protests we see in the US are not happening in a vacuum. There is a worldwide white supremacist movement growing every year and being increasingly legitimized through politics. In case you didn't know, Poland is increasingly moving further to the right, their right wing Law and justice Party was voted into power in 2015.

There were an estimated 60,000 people in attendance for the “Independence March” and about 5,000 counter protesters. The white supremacists were mostly protesting refugees, Islam, and the EU. People carried banners saying, “Europe Will be White” and “Clean Blood”. All of this in spite of the fact that Poland has refused to take in refugees with officials saying, “people of Muslim background are a threat to Security.” Fewer than one percent of the Polish population is Muslim. If all of this sounds familiar, it is familiar. We have echos (or shouts) of these very same ideas within the United States, seen with the trump travel ban and other legislative measures taken against refugees.

The participants marched under the slogan, “We want God,” which comes from an old Polish nationalist song that Trump quoted duringing his visit to Poland this year. Everything. Is. Connected. The white supremacists in Poland choose a nazi wartime song and Trump quote to march under... interpret that how you will.  

While the anti EU, anti Islam, and anti refuge attitudes occurring in Europe and the also in the US might seem to be different, I think they are directly related to the things we are learning in class now.

In class we are learning about the civil rights and post civil rights period in America. We touched on it in class today with the D.N.C. in 1964 refusing to give power and inclusion to the M.F.D.P. The people in power are deeply dedicated to remaining in power.

Additionally, people have radicalized the marginalized throughout history. We have heard that African Americans are uncontrollable or ‘super predators’ (thanks gone with the wind; this is a bipartisan effort, Hillary) and refugees are terrorists or criminals. In class we have seen that slavery and segregation was a moral obligation for many people because it was deeply tied to religion. In the US slavery and segregation was sanctified through christianity. We once again are seeing white supremacy tied to the idea of religion, particularly christianity, with marchers in Poland chanting, “We want God”.

What connections do you see between class and the international rise of white supremacy and anti refugee movements?

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Rachel Farley