The march cast a disturbing light on the militant and radical currents coursing through Europe’s ever-more successful nationalist parties, for whom Hungary’s governing Fidesz party is a model. Its members include Poland’s ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party, Alternative for Germany, and the Austrian Freedom Party, among many others. Their polished images and relatively temperate language have enabled them to post record numbers at the ballot box of late—and, indeed, to jar Europe’s liberal order by pushing their policies on three areas in which their interests overlap with neo-Nazi extremists: immigration, Islam, and the EU.
In contrast to the professional politicos who crave respectability and votes, the figures who marched on Saturday wore masks, flashed white-power insignia, and screamed “Pure Poland, white Poland!” and “Refugees get out!” One banner on display read Pure blood, Clear mind; another read Europe will be white or uninhabited. Marchers waved giant Polish flags and set off smoke bombs and flares that blanketed the procession in clouds of red smoke. The rightist parties—distinct from the mob—need the energies and numbers of the extremists to keep their base alive and engaged. But that comes with enormous risks, ones that Europe knows well.
For more read the full of article at The Atlantic.
