Right-wing Populism and the COVID-19 Crisis in Germany, Sweden and Finland

The event will be live streamed with Facebook Live. You find the event here.

In many countries the COVID-19 crisis had initially led to increased trust in government. Restrictions to personal freedoms, social contacts, curfews, the closure of large segments of the economy as well as the widening of executive powers in many countries was largely accepted and supported by the public.

However, frustration and distrust in government have been increasing the longer the restrictions have been in place. Some countries, such as Germany, witnessed large demonstrations against the counter measures. Moreover, the wide dissemination of fake news and conspiracy theories are influencing the public debate on how to handle the pandemic.

To discuss these issues at hand, we have invited Niko Hatakka and Ann-Catherine Jungar to present their findings on the development in Finland and Sweden as well as Nicholas Potter from the Amadeu Antonio Stiftung for a closer understanding of the German case. Join us to learn more about the strategies right-wing populist movements have chosen during the pandemic.  

Program:
11:00 Welcome, Mikko Lievonen, Kalevi Sorsa Foundation (12:00 Finnish time)
11:05 The Finnish case, Niko Hatakka (12:05 Finnish time)
11:15 The Swedish case, Ann-Cathrine Jungar (12:15 Finnish time)
11:25 The German case, Nicholas Potter (12:25 Finnish time)
11:35 Moderated discussion, Verena Stern (12:35 Finnish time)
11:55 Wrap-up, Håkan A. Bengtsson, Arenagruppen (12:55 Finnish time)
12:00 End (13:00 Finnish time)

Speakers:
Ann-Cathrine Jungar is an associate professor in political science at the Department of Social Sciences at Södertörn University in Stockholm. Her current research deals with right-wing populism in Europe with a specific focus on the Nordic countries.

Nicholas Potter is a writer with a focus on right-wing extremism, antisemitism, racism and conspiracy ideologies. He is an editor and journalist at Belltower.News, a project by the Amadeu Antonio Foundation.

Niko Hatakka is a Research Fellow at the Department of Political Science and International Studies at the University of Birmingham.

Verena Stern is a Doctoral Researcher in the Faculty of Sociology at Bielefeld University.

Find all the reports from the project “Profiteers of Fear?” here.

The event is a cooperation between: Kalevi Sorsa Foundation, Arenagruppen and the Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung Nordic Countries.