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Alt-lite

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Not to be confused withNew Right.

Thealt-lite,also known as thealt-light[1]and thenew right,[2]is a loosely definedright-wingpolitical movementwhose members regard themselves as separate from both mainstreamconservatismand the far-right, white nationalistalt-right.The concept is primarily associated with theUnited States,where it emerged in 2017. The term remained in vogue during theTrump administration,as observers assessed all sources forright-wing populism,but has mostly faded from popular discourse as of 2024.

According toextremismscholar George Hawley,alt-litewas coined bywhite nationalistsas apejorative,in an attempt to exclude more moderate figures from the alt-right.[3]The termalt-righthad previously included "anyone that fell on the right of the political spectrum but had major problems with the conservative movement", includingpopulistsandlibertarians.[4]After the termalt-rightwas successfully reclaimed by white nationalists, previous adherents abandoned the term, and started calling themselves populists orcivic nationalists.[5]

History

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The termalternative rightwas coined byPaul Gottfried,but was later adopted byRichard B. Spencerwho sought to use it to promote white nationalist ideas across the political right in the United States. However, there remained differing views on the term; some understood it as an umbrella term for a broad range of rightists outside theneoconservatismthen dominant in theU.S. conservative movement,includingpaleoconservatives,libertarians,localists,andright-wing populistsas well as white nationalists.[6]By 2010, many of the non-white-nationalist rightists who used the term distanced themselves from it after it became increasingly apparent that Spencer intended the term as a banner of white nationalism.[6]In 2016, as the term became popularised in U.S. public discourse, it again came to be used by many people who were not white nationalists but who saw it as a useful term to refer to rightists outside the mainstream conservative movement.[7]

Some have traced the recognition of the alt-lite—as a distinct entity from the alt-right—to what is seen as the consolidation of the alt-right as a white nationalist movement, while the alt-lite is more culturally nationalist. In a speech given to a meeting of white nationalists in November 2016,Richard B. Spencer(who is often credited with creating or popularizing the termalt-right) quotedNazi propagandaand declared "Hail Trump, hail our people, hail victory!" while members of the audience responded to this by givingHitler salutes.[8][9]

Subsequently, various figures who had been linked to the alt-right distanced themselves from Spencer's remarks, and suggested that two factions had emerged from the alt-right.[2][10][11][8]This was the result of a rift within the wider alt-right movement, between those favoring white nationalism and more moderate forces. Some of the latter group adopted the term Third New Right "(as a follow-on to the earlierSecond New Right) to describe themselves, withMike Cernovichsaying of the division that "the lines are drawn and the fracture is more or less complete".[10]The termalt-liteis thought by theAnti-Defamation League(ADL) to have been created by members of the alt-right to distinguish themselves from right-wing groups and ideologies who supportwhite supremacyandwhite nationalism.[11]According to the ADL, there is crossover and line-toeing between the alt-right and alt-lite groupings, making it difficult or impossible to tell which side of the theoretical line they belong on.[11]This ambiguity contributes to thealt-right pipeline,in which supporters of the alt-lite become acclimated to the alt-right.[12]

Historian Joshua Tait argued that the alt-lite "found the most mainstream success. These figures in the alt-lite entered the mainstream by alternating between courting and rejecting the more explicitly racist elements of the alt-right, massively expanding the movement's reach and ultimately placing it inside the White House."[13]

Etymology

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The division between alt-right and alt-lite received further media attention in June 2017 when the two factions found themselves divided over the issue of Spencer's attendance at a Free Speech rally in Washington, D.C.[14]Certain individuals protested Spencer's involvement by organizing a competing rally on the same day, with Spencer referring to such individuals as "alt-lite" and saying that "the movement needs a good purge".[15]

TheUnite the Right rallyin 2017 exacerbated tensions between the white nationalist alt-right, who supported and attended the rally, and the alt-lite, who did not and expressed disdain for it.[16]Breitbart Newsdistanced itself from the alt-right and criticized other media outlets that described them in such a manner,[17]as didMilo Yiannopoulos,who insisted he had "nothing in common" with Spencer.[18]

AcademicAngela Nagledescribed the alt-lite as "the youthful bridge between the alt-right and mainstreamTrumpism".[19]She was of the view that it was the alt-lite, and not the alt-right, which had successfully utilised theNouvelle Droite's ideas about promoting cultural change as a prerequisite for long-term political change.[20]Nagle characterized Cernovich as a "major figure in the alt-lite milieu".[21]She also characterizedAlex Jonesas being part of it.[22]

Beliefs

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People associated with the alt-lite have distanced themselves from theethnic nationalismof the alt-right.[1]As with the alt-right, the alt-lite commonly shows broad support forDonald Trump,cultural nationalismandnon-interventionism.Many in the alt-lite criticize or opposepolitical correctness,Islam,feminism(sometimes restricted to thefourth wave),LGBT rights,welfareandillegal immigration.It has been described as a "misogynistic"and"xenophobic"movement by theAnti-Defamation League.[11]

Alt-right figures have described Breitbart News andSteve Bannonas "alt-lite" for presenting a diluted form of alt-right ideas.[8]

Wiredhas referred to the alt-lite as "the alt-right's relatively mild-mannered sibling".[23]

Proponents

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TheAnti-Defamation Leaguehas published a list of people whom it calls alt-lite, consisting of writer andpodcasthostBrittany Pettibone,Maryland activistColton Merwin,2018 SenateRepublicancandidate from VirginiaCorey Stewart,Proud Boysand Vice founderGavin McInnes,EnglishYouTuberPaul Joseph Watson,conspiracy theoristJack Posobiec,right-wing activistKyle Chapman,Proud Boys recruiterKyle Prescott,conservative White House correspondentLucian Wintrich,radio personalityMike Cernovich,and media provocateurMilo Yiannopoulos.[11][24][25]

References

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Footnotes

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  1. ^abMarantz, Andrew (June 6, 2017)."The alt-right branding war has torn the movement in two".The New Yorker.RetrievedJune 6,2017.
  2. ^abZiv, Stav (July 19, 2017)."'Alt-right' or 'alt-lite'? New guide from ADL classifies right-wing activists ".Newsweek.Archivedfrom the original on July 20, 2017.RetrievedJuly 20,2017.
  3. ^Hawley 2017,p. 143.
  4. ^Hawley 2017,p. 139.
  5. ^Fowlie, Craig (May 13, 2022)."American Anti-Fascism Comes of Age".Fascism.11(1): 139–144.doi:10.1163/22116257-bja10033.ISSN2211-6257.S2CID248926436.Burley is an acute observer of the range of far-right ideological positions, organising strategies and symbolism, and carefully delineates the splits within the movement between the white supremacist factions, the civic nationalist so-called 'alt-lite', and the patriot movement of militias and paramilitary groups
  6. ^abHawley 2017,pp. 139–140.
  7. ^Hawley 2017,pp. 140–141.
  8. ^abcPearce, Matt (November 29, 2016)."The 'alt-right' splinters as supporters and critics agree it was white supremacy all along".Los Angeles Times.ISSN0458-3035.RetrievedMay 9,2017.
  9. ^Staff (November 21, 2016)."'Hail Trump!': Richard Spencer Speech Excerpts ".The Atlantic.RetrievedOctober 30,2017.
  10. ^abKearney, Laila (December 29, 2016)."Trump fans' 'Deploraball' party shows rift in alt-right movement".Reuters.Archivedfrom the original on December 29, 2016.RetrievedDecember 29,2016.
  11. ^abcdeStaff (July 18, 2017)."From Alt Right to Alt Lite: Naming the Hate".Anti-Defamation League.Archivedfrom the original on October 25, 2017.RetrievedJuly 18,2017.
  12. ^Ribeiro, Manoel Horta; Ottoni, Raphael; West, Robert; Almeida, Virgílio A. F.; Meira, Wagner (January 27, 2020). "Auditing radicalization pathways on YouTube".Proceedings of the 2020 Conference on Fairness, Accountability, and Transparency.pp. 131–141.doi:10.1145/3351095.3372879.ISBN9781450369367.S2CID201316434.
  13. ^Tait, Joshua (August 10, 2023)."What Was the Alt-Right?".Tablet.
  14. ^Krupkin, Taly (June 22, 2017)."The Jewish Provocateur Caught in the Turf War as the 'Alt-right' Battles the 'Alt-light'".Haaretz.Archivedfrom the original on June 25, 2017.RetrievedJuly 23,2017.
  15. ^Moyer, Justin (June 23, 2017)."'Alt-right' and 'alt-lite'? Conservatives plan dueling conservative rallies Sunday in D.C. "The Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on February 14, 2019.RetrievedMay 27,2021.
  16. ^Hawley 2017,p. 152;Atkinson 2018,p. 310.
  17. ^Wendling 2018,p. 215.
  18. ^Wendling 2018,p. 214.
  19. ^Nagle 2017,p. 41.
  20. ^Nagle 2017,pp. 40–41.
  21. ^Nagle 2017,p. 50.
  22. ^Nagle 2017,p. 51.
  23. ^Ellis, Emma Grey (May 10, 2017)."The Alt-Right's Newest Ploy? Trolling With False Symbols".Wired.RetrievedMay 18,2017.
  24. ^"From Alt Right to Alt Lite: Naming the Hate".adl.org.RetrievedNovember 14,2022.
  25. ^Krupkin, Taly (July 20, 2017)."'Alt-lite' Trump Supporters Blast ADL Over Inclusion on 'Hate List'".Haaretz.RetrievedJuly 20,2017.

Bibliography

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