Violent demonstrations, car attacks, assaults, killings, shootings – the list of racially motivated hate crimes all over the United States is long and it shows the extent to which white supremacy dominates society. In order to counteract these kinds of acts and racism in general, it is necessary to gain an in-depth understanding of white supremacy. The research area is multi-faceted and ranges from focusing on economic factors and consequences like rioting and looting to aspects of religion. The latter will be of special interest in the following paper. As Johnson (2018) points out, a common research topic in relation to religion is its role in the radicalisation of Muslims. Meanwhile, the same function concerning far-rights and Christianity is less often addressed even though “[w]hite supremacists […] use religious concepts and scripture to justify threats, criminal activity and violence” (Johnson, 2018). Further, research often neglects the connection between religion and racism. Thus, this paper aims to analyse how and why far-rights incorporate Christianity into their ideology by examining an article published on a far-right website and a documentary about far-rights at the Charlottesville demonstrations in 2017.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Theoretical Framework
2.1. Essential Terms: Far-Right and White Supremacy
2.2. History of Christianity and Racism
2.3. Defining the Role of Religion in Far-Right Extremism
3. Methodology
4. Analysis
4.1. Article about Christianity in the Far-Right Movement
4.2. Documentary about the Charlottesville Rally
5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography
Research Objective and Topics
This paper aims to investigate the ideological intersection of far-right movements in the United States and Christianity, specifically exploring how and why these groups incorporate religious concepts to justify their agendas and foster group cohesion.
- The historical and ideological nexus between white supremacy and Christianity.
- The use of religious rhetoric as a tool for mobilization and recruitment.
- Legitimization of exclusionary violence through Christian identity narratives.
- Analysis of far-right digital discourse and physical protest documentation.
- The construction of "white victimhood" as a defensive, religiously coded strategy.
Excerpt from the Book
2.2. History of Christianity and Racism
The link between religion and the concept of race is deeply entrenched in history and it exists until today (cf. Martin et al., 2020: 230). The history of Christianity and racism in the United States is rooted in the colonial era and its concept of slavery: The Christian religion provided several possibilities to legitimise slavery as a whole and the choice of who was to be enslaved. Thus, in the beginning of colonialism, Christians were not to be enslaved (cf. Osterweil, 2020: 34). In 1789, the United States were founded as a “white nation” (Weed, 2017: 123) which means that whiteness was considered to be a requirement for the citizenship. The U.S. were also founded as a “Christian nation – the belief of the United States as God’s chosen nation—and the need to secure Christianity in the future fabric of the nation” (Weed, 2017: xxii).
Muhammad (2020: 211) furthermore highlights the “anti-black references and iconography” in the Christian tradition. For instance, black is depicted as being the colour of the devil, “vileness, servitude, and divine damnation” (Muhammad, 2020: 211). On the contrary, Jesus Christ as the Christian savior is depicted as being white (Weed, 2017: 125). In this manner, “[c]hurch institutions contributed to the endurance of white elitism by providing a theological basis for white superiority” (Temoney, 2020: 165). The transfer of this meaning to skin colour continued and was further expanded by theories of the Enlightenment (cf. Osterweil, 2020: 34).
Consequently, Christianity and white supremacy are intertwined in their roots. Weed (2017: xvi) worked with a theo-historical approach to “demonstrate how white supremacist Christianity was constructed and operated and how it continues to maintain American society for whites and for the betterment of whites.” Therefore, his analysis is not only about extremists but about white people and whiteness in general (Weed, 2017: xxi). According to Weed (2017: 122) white supremacy can be understood as a religion itself – especially in regard to the normativity of the Christian religion: Three-quarters of the U.S. population are Christians. Weed (2017: xxii) considers this aspect to be “key in understanding how [...] a Christian moral code and ethos necessarily permeates or drives the cultural and social contract of the nation.”
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: The introduction establishes the research focus on the linkages between race, religion, and the far-right in the U.S., highlighting the need to understand how Christianity is utilized within these ideologies.
2. Theoretical Framework: This chapter defines key concepts such as white supremacy and provides a historical overview of the entanglement between Christianity and systemic racism in America.
3. Methodology: This section describes the qualitative approach, detailing the selection of a specific article from the Daily Stormer and a VICE News documentary to analyze far-right religious rhetoric.
4. Analysis: The analysis examines how far-right groups use Christian terminology to defend their values, build community, and justify violent actions or exclusionary politics.
5. Conclusion: The conclusion synthesizes findings, noting that Christianity often functions as a strategic tool for legitimization rather than a sincere spiritual belief within far-right extremism.
6. Bibliography: This section provides a comprehensive list of all academic and media sources cited throughout the paper.
Keywords
Far-Right, Christianity, White Supremacy, Ideology, Radicalization, Racism, United States, Charlottesville, Daily Stormer, Religion, Social Construct, White Victimhood, Political Conservatism, Colonialism.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research paper?
The paper investigates the ideological relationship between far-right movements in the U.S. and Christianity, analyzing how these groups incorporate Christian elements into their worldview.
What are the central themes explored in this study?
The central themes include the historical link between white supremacy and religious tradition, the use of religion for social mobilization, and the justification of violence through Christian rhetoric.
What is the core research question?
The study explores how and why far-right movements incorporate aspects of Christianity into their political and social ideologies.
Which scientific methods are employed?
The author uses a qualitative research design based on social constructivism, analyzing an article from the Daily Stormer and a documentary about the 2017 Charlottesville rally.
What is the focus of the analytical section?
The analysis focuses on interpreting how specific far-right narratives manipulate Christian symbols and values to recruit members and construct an identity based on "white victimhood."
Which keywords characterize the work?
Key terms include Far-Right, Christianity, White Supremacy, Radicalization, and Social Construction.
How does the author define the role of Christianity in the context of the far-right?
The author suggests that Christianity is frequently used as a strategic tool for unification and the legitimization of exclusionary goals, rather than as a purely spiritual practice.
What role does the 'Charlottesville Rally' play in the analysis?
The documentary regarding the rally serves as a practical case study for observing how far-right movements project their ideologies, including the use of nationalist and religious imagery, in a physical, real-world setting.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Sinja Köhne (Autor:in), 2022, The Far-Right Movement in the United States and Religion, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/1689066
