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Populist Mainstream The Dynamics Behind the Rise of Corbyn, Tsipras, Trump, and Kanye West Explained The beast of populism is back again. However, in light of the ubiquity of this phenomenon, it may be beneficial to ask: what ultimately consists populism of and why is it considered to be the new trend?
Populism has various aspects and many directions. However, under no circumstances should it be called an ideology. In a nutshell, populism is a method to gain power, not a political movement. There is no ideological uniformity to it, it is just a poor policy adopted by politicians whose sole objective is to gain power. It can affect any political party, regardless of its ideological persuasion. It is likewise not a means of defending peoples’ rights as it was deemed in the past decades; it is a cheap weapon that political actors use and negatively affects those who fostered it in the first place. It is on the one hand able to boost someone to power while being equally capable on the other to have the exact opposite effects when this rise to power is achieved. Lately, the concept of populism has again gained common currency, as a handful of people choose it as the easiest option to gain and exercise political power. In doing so, they avoid exercising their status in a proper manner, adopting practically unfeasible policies. Populism is being advertised and advocated across the world and undoubtedly exercises a great attraction on both the media and society. Presenting a false dilemma, it promotes the word “we” against the word “they”. The populist is presented as the new “Messiah” – a saviour coming to the aid of the helpless. The “bad guy” will mostly be their established political opposite. For the populist, the answer to a policy problem is quite simple; it is either Yes or No. In other words, Europe or Autonomy. Therefore, the ultimate product of such phenomena tends to be controversy and division. The social and economic insecurity, the lack of trust in
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today’s politicians, as well as high unemployment rates have triggered the phenomenon of populism across the continent - especially in South-Eastern Europe, where the socio-economic crisis has burdened people excessively. Unemployment, the economic crisis, and especially the lack of trust towards the established political system have left a substantial share of the population in this region immensely vulnerable. It is at that exact time that populists will undertake their greatest efforts to seize power without further consideration of the impact this will have in the near future, since they are only interested in acquiring power for its own sake. Alexis Tsipras is a typical example of this type of politician and the one who took most advantage of the economic crisis. He exploited the fears of Greek citizens with the sole aim of creating bipolarity. Depicting the Troika as the embodiment of evil, he stylised himself in turn as a hero. On the basis of this fairytale and without view for any subsequent repercussions, he divided the Greek citizens into two camps. The sense of threat created among Hellenic voters with his scaremongering was intentional: it left them no other choice than to accept Tsipras as the deus ex machina and ideal leader he presented himself as. Populism can, within the European context, likewise express itself in Euroscepticism. In any case, the economic crisis has not only affected the countries of South-Eastern Europe and Europe itself but also its constitution. The European Union is tested day by day and Euroscepticism is rapidly expanding. Furthermore, concerns over an upcoming Brexit are spreading as well. Arguably even worse is Jeremy Corbyn’s anachronistic Marxism that threatens not only Britain’s
social cohesion, but economic and national security. It is not a crime to be a dreamer, as long as one assumes responsibility for one’s actions and is able to act when it is really needed. It is one of the easiest things to make promises one cannot keep, but difficult to turn one’s words into real actions; especially when one’s policy is not based on realistic views. Nonetheless, the above problem is not only one observed in Europe: it has appeared in the United States of America as well. This is crucial to acknowledge: for, how can we say that populism is a product of the socio-economic crisis, when the US has not been as gravely affected by it? It is mistaken to believe that economic downturns are the only factor associated with populism. They exacerbate populist tendencies. Populism itself is primarily sustained by the sentiment of fear that citizens feel as a result of these and other crises, leaving them with a real need to seek for a “hero”. It is into these fears that Donald Trump taps, who is determined to tackle the problem of illegal immigration through building further border fences, thereby creating an ever greater divide between the United States and Mexico. He is also foremost proof that populism can exist even amongst the wealthiest and most prestigious shares of society. Another case in point here is the rapper Kanye West. Has one ever questioned what Kanye is doing in politics? Kanye simply represents the anti-politician tendency which is lately considered to be the radical trend. The same trend is representative of the old “glamour” of socialism. Thus, “Mr West” represents the ultimate feature of populism which hails a radically alternative style as being the dominant and the sole true political approach. According to this conception, truly active politicians are at the end of the day those who are less involved in politics. This is yet another constituent aspect of populism which is rooted in the belief of “fighting the system through the system itself”. In essence, is this a new era of politicians or simply a troubling stage that each generation has to deal with? Time will tell.
Syrila Makarezou