The days when right-wing extremists only showed up with bald heads, combat boots, blue jeans and bomber jackets are largely over. They wear hip clothes, listen to rap music and have arrived in the middle of society. How do you recognize right-wing extremists today? Is there still such a thing as a "right-wing lifestyle" and what symbolism, codes, music and clothing reveal that a person or group may present themselves as middle-class, but actually represent radical right-wing content?
Right-wing extremists are increasingly trying to push the boundaries of what can be said in society further to the right. The new "normal", the new "center" is to be shifted towards their world view. As the martial demeanor familiar to many from the 80s and 90s seems rather counterproductive when it comes to making contact with the middle classes, the scene has undergone a transformation in recent years. This has prompted connoisseurs of the scene to constantly re-examine the term "right-wing lifestyle" in order to recognize new codes that are now concealed behind the outward appearance in suits and hipster outfits.
The scene uses a new choice of words to incorporate their goals into everyday language. Right-wing extremists use symbols and numerical codes for recognition and use supposedly harmless hand signals to convey their world view via social media videos. Even their music is no longer stereotypical and can be recognized from afar as neo-Nazi battle slogans. Punk and reggae rhythms are now also used to convey violent fantasies against groups of people or xenophobic inflammatory slogans.
Bastian Drumm has been observing this scene for many years. In his lecture, which has since been revised and updated, he discusses the extensive symbolism, codes, music and clothing of the far-right scene. He supplements the lecture with lots of up-to-date background information. Drumm will be accompanied musically on this evening by the duo Hannah & Finn. They impress with their purist sound and their own interpretations and arrangements for vocals and guitar of many well-known songs from the 80s, 90s and 2000s. During the musical passages of the evening, the audience is given time to process the information and, if necessary, receive answers to open questions afterwards.
"The wolf in sheep's clothing" - this old saying seems more relevant than ever. Anyone who follows the news, talk shows, reports and, above all, the internet on social media channels is confronted daily not only with subliminal, but increasingly with offensively right-wing extremist ideas. In the meantime, not only are terms being exchanged, for example race for cultural area, but also the appearance. Monja Roepke, Chairwoman of the Democratic Network Association, emphasizes: "Our democracy is currently the best basis for social coexistence and the Basic Law is the answer to fascism and its devastating effects. It is up to all of us to keep our eyes open so that we can continue to recognize the enemies of our democracy early on and actively defend it against inhuman world views."