<font color='#55563B' size='2'>Political extremism at the local and regional level: the Mayor of Athens answers hatred with solidarity</font>
Political extremism at the local and regional level: the Mayor of Athens answers hatred with solidarity
[12/11/2013]
Directly confronted with the rise of the Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn, the Mayor of Athens, Yiorgos Kaminis, is responding to its provocations with “the law and solidarity”. On 30 October 2013 he took part in a debate organised by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe on extremism at the local and regional level, and presented his City’s actions geared to countering the influence of this party. While political extremism takes a variety of forms, from “presentable” discourse to clandestine action by ultra-violent splinter groups, it invariably feeds on perceived threats to the national identity which the traditional parties often have difficulty countering. Magali Balent, a specialist in extremism and nationalism at the Robert Schuman Foundation (France), painted a picture of the nationalist and protest parties and movements which are developing throughout Europe, far from being confined to the countries in crisis.
Extrémisme politique au niveau local et régional : à Athènes, la mairie répond à la haine par la solidarité
[12/11/2013]
Directement confronté à l’ascension du parti néo-nazi grec Aube dorée, le maire d’Athènes, Yiorgos Kaminis, répond à ses provocations par « le droit et la solidarité ». Participant, le 30 octobre 2013, à un débat organisé par le Congrès des pouvoirs locaux et régionaux du Conseil de l’Europe sur l’extrémisme au niveau local et régional, il a présenté les actions menées par sa ville pour contrer l’influence de ce parti.
Si l’extrémisme politique revêt de nombreuses formes, depuis le discours « présentable » jusqu’aux actions clandestines de groupuscules ultra-violents, il se nourrit toujours de peurs identitaires auxquelles les partis traditionnels ont souvent du mal à répondre. Spécialiste des extrémismes et des nationalismes à la Fondation Robert Schuman (France), Magali Balent a dressé un tableau des partis et mouvements nationalistes et protestataires qui se développent dans toute l’Europe, bien au-delà des seuls pays en crise.
Print 
Send 
Français 
Directly confronted with the rise of the Greek neo-Nazi party Golden Dawn, the Mayor of Athens, Yiorgos Kaminis, is responding to its provocations with “the law and solidarity”. On 30 October 2013 he took part in a debate organised by the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of the Council of Europe on extremism at the local and regional level, and presented his City’s actions geared to countering the influence of this party. While political extremism takes a variety of forms, from “presentable” discourse to clandestine action by ultra-violent splinter groups, it invariably feeds on perceived threats to the national identity which the traditional parties often have difficulty countering. Magali Balent, a specialist in extremism and nationalism at the Robert Schuman Foundation (France), painted a picture of the nationalist and protest parties and movements which are developing throughout Europe, far from being confined to the countries in crisis.