Introduction: social movements and radicalisation in Europe

Abstract

ABSTRACT This Special Issue (SI) provides a nuanced understanding of the root causes of radicalisation among European youth with both nativist and religious affiliations. The contributions challenge the civilisational paradigm and the reductionist interpretations that often conflate it with extremism, terrorism, and violence. Our contributors contend that the rise of populist rhetoric across Europe, alongside the notable strengthening of grassroots resistance, has led to a pronounced polarisation of public opinion. Drawing on the literature in Social Movement Studies, each contributor provides an analysis of various processes of youth radicalisation across different European nations. They illuminate that both nativist and Islamist forms of radicalisation among European youth function as frames for justification and alternative political expressions – almost akin to a form of anti-politics. This serves as a means for them to protect themselves from the destabilising effects of deindustrialisation, discrimination, alienation, humiliation, and stigmatisation. The findings underscore that radicalised youth tend to employ unconventional forms of political expression to articulate their knowledge and garner public attention to their marginalised status. This stems from their lack of trust in political centers, which they perceive as failing to provide remedies for disenfranchised youths experiencing socio-economic, political, spatial, and nostalgic deprivation in the era of globalisation.