Rise of the far right threatens the values of the West

Indicators of the rise of the far right in the West are growing amid fears of effects that may harm the societal culture of some countries, in addition to the security concerns left by current trends about carrying out terrorist attacks.

The first week of June witnessed a boom in the activities of the far right on various levels in several countries, most notably the United States, Germany and Sweden, as the activities of the movement still represent an obsession of unequal intensity among the Western security services.

US faces the far right

The United States' vision of the far right differs from other countries for some reasons, most notably the nature of the ruler, which is currently represented by the Democratic Party that adopts the values of equality, freedom, and racial non-discrimination as political tools to promote its ideas about governance, as well as the slogan of its election campaigns, in addition to the famous storming of Capitol Hill on January 6, 2021, during the session confirming Joe Biden's victory in the US presidential race, which left dead and wounded, and famous scenes of violence that increased the spotlight on the far right's activities.

On Tuesday, June 6, 2023, the Americans celebrated the 79th anniversary of Victory Day, in which the American and Allied forces were able to storm the beaches of Normandy and carry out an amphibious military operation that contributed to the elimination of Nazism in Europe.

Remembering the right’s transgressions

The American community dealt with this year’s anniversary as an important occasion to open the file of the far right and to recall the transgressions that this approach caused in Europe and how it left victims, as US President Joe Biden delivered a speech in which he stated that the military forces fought for freedom, calling on society to adhere to the values for which the World War II veterans sacrificed their lives and to consider them sacred values that preserve the present and the future, most notably freedom, democracy, and guaranteeing equal opportunities for all.

For his part, Dennis Helms, son of former CIA Director Richard Helms (1966-1973), said during an interview with the Guardian on the occasion of Victory Day that right-wing extremism and acceptance of Nazi beliefs is the worst scenario for the country's future, expressing his astonishment that there are people who still believe in the feasibility of discrimination and segregation.

Germany, Sweden, and shifts right

In Sweden, there are increasing societal discussions about the roles played by the far right in changing the culture of citizens and the slow transition from liberation, pluralism and respect for the other to extremism towards various issues, most notably sex and the treatment of children.

Reuters reported statistics on June 7 indicating the progress of far-right parties in Germany in opinion polls regarding elections and party opportunities and found that the chances of the far right are increasing remarkably, especially the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

The International Terrorism Index for 2023 issued by the Sydney-based Institute for Economics and Peace pointed out that far-right attacks in Europe are now expected to cause deaths and injuries, such as an attack in Norway that killed 77 people, and another against the Christchurch mosque in March 2019, which claimed the lives of 51 people who were killed while praying.

During the period from 2007 to 2022, the year 2019 witnessed a peak in far-right attacks, according to the index, and the study finds that ideological terrorism, divided between the far right and the far left, is the most dangerous form of terrorism that threatens the West, pointing to the Buffalo attack in New York, which killed 10 people, as one of the worst right-wing attacks in the West in 2022.