Examining the Fascist Elements of Trump's Close Relationship with the Far-Right

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Description

Since the beginning of his campaign in 2015, former President Donald Trump has enjoyed the support of a broad coalition of domestic, radical far-right groups and has himself peddled several conspiracy theories favored by these groups. Even prior to his

Since the beginning of his campaign in 2015, former President Donald Trump has enjoyed the support of a broad coalition of domestic, radical far-right groups and has himself peddled several conspiracy theories favored by these groups. Even prior to his campaign, Trump supported far-right conspiracies, evidenced by his strong support for birtherism, the belief that former President Obama was not a U.S. citizen or Christian. Instead of distancing himself and his administration from these groups, President Trump repeatedly refused to forcefully and continuously denounce these far-right extremists and consistently amplified both individuals ideologically associated with these groups and the groups themselves. This continual behavior by President Trump, coupled with his endorsement of election fraud theories after his loss in the 2020 election, culminated in an armed insurrection against the United States Government on January 6th 2021. The armed mob that stormed the Capitol, which was directly incited into violence by President Trump, consisted of a multitude of individuals, many of which belonged to different far-right extremist groups. Despite their aesthetic and strategic differences, these separate groups were united in their support of President Trump, who they viewed as a leader promoting their various causes. These groups were part of a movement that had attached itself to Donald Trump, one that Trump directly fostered through his rhetoric and actions. I believe that this Trump centered movement exhibits significant fascist elements and undertones. In order to make sense of these fascist elements, I will use of Robert O. Paxton’s historical analysis and account of fascism to contextualize and understand the ideology. I will examine the President’s role in creating this far-right movement and amplifying the messaging & profile of various the far-right groups that supported him, before arguing that Trump and his far-right movement possess many of the requisite qualifiers to be potentially be labeled as fascist under Paxton’s account. This examination will reveal the similarities between these far-right groups, painting a clearer picture as to why they participated in this movement and aligned themselves in support of Trump. Finally, I will examine the potential short and long term solutions to addressing or resolving the problems that have been left in the wake of the Trump presidency. How did different far-right extremist groups with varying ideologies form a politically mainstream coalition large enough to impact American electoral politics? I will argue that former President Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric, consistent refusal to strongly denounce far-right groups, and amplification of far-right individuals and ideas fostered an environment for these groups to thrive.

Date Created
2021-05
Agent

The Resurgence of Greek Nationalism Through the Macedonian Name Conflict

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Description
Subsequent to the independence of the Republic of North Macedonia, there has been a revival of Greek nationalism. The Greek belief that “Macedonia is Greek” has united the Greek community around the world, and created a new Greek nationalism to

Subsequent to the independence of the Republic of North Macedonia, there has been a revival of Greek nationalism. The Greek belief that “Macedonia is Greek” has united the Greek community around the world, and created a new Greek nationalism to protect the ethnic claim that the Macedonian name is Greek. To better understand how this resurgence of nationalism came to be, I examine certain elements and concepts such as: ethno-cultural and historical claims, politics, borders, Greek diaspora and media sources.
I provide a condensed history on the ancient Kingdom of Macedon (Macedonia) as well as the Balkan Wars and how it led to the breakup of Yugoslavia and independence of the (prior) Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM). I then go over the recent conflict over the “Macedonian” name and how the Prespa Agreement led to the name change of the Republic of North Macedonia. I use both the Republic of North Macedonia and North Macedonia interchangeably.
Following the history over the Macedonian name conflict, I provide a literature review to understand concepts such as “nationalism”, “borders”, “diaspora”, “media and politics”, and I analyze how a resurgence of Greek nationalism came to fruition from the aforementioned topics.
Date Created
2020-05
Agent

Refugee Clinical Care and Inclusion Infrastructure: Following the journey of Syrian refugees to comprehensively evaluate global care

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Description
Human rights and migration policy leave no person in a nation unaffected. Due to the recent Syrian refugee crisis, the world stage has been critically put to the test for its border policies and the infrastructure it can provide for

Human rights and migration policy leave no person in a nation unaffected. Due to the recent Syrian refugee crisis, the world stage has been critically put to the test for its border policies and the infrastructure it can provide for refugees. It is an imperative to reflect on the successes and shortcomings of this ongoing issue in order to build more sustainable and impactful infrastructure for future migrant resettlement. This paper analyzes Sweden, Germany, and Jordan through a lens focused on government and social development and the correlating impact on Syrian refugees. By evaluating government entities and non-government organizations, while also interviewing Syrian refugees themselves, this paper builds a framework for understanding the global stage’s response to the Syrian refugee crisis. Out of this framework are recommendations for more effective resettlement practices, developed via retrospective analysis.
Date Created
2020-05
Agent