2013/10/18 by Dominic Alessio, Kristen Meredith · 2 citations
Social Sciences · Arts and Humanities · #Italian Fascism and Post-war Society #Historical and Contemporary Political Dynamics #Communism, Protests, Social Movements
paper · doi:10.1080/13504630.2013.843058
openalex publication_date 2013/10/18 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2025/11/06
This paper examines the extent to which the English Defence League (EDL) may be considered fascist in form and ideology. First, it draws comparisons between the EDL and the squadristi of interwar Italy. Second, it explores how the EDL has negotiated a new political direction as it joins forces with the British Freedom Party (BFP). By adopting a theoretical framework of fascism as outlined by Roger Griffin, this work advocates that the EDL has transformed its single-issue anti-Islamist platform into part of a larger discourse of ‘palingenetic ultranationalism’. In light of this we argue the organization can no longer deny the presence of a fascist ideology.