Immigration, the Far Right, and Femonationalism: Discursive Strategies in Spain and Chile

Abstract

This article analyzes the heterogeneity of far-right parties in the recontextualization of their populist narrative and exclusionary ideology regarding immigration. Two cases are presented to illustrate the strategic use of such discourses. First, it examines femonationalism in Europe through Aliança Catalana, a party that promotes Catalonia’s (Spain) independence and rejects immigration, particularly from Muslim communities. Second, it addresses the case of Chile, where the Republican Party and the National Libertarian Party instrumentalize immigration as a matter of security and border control, incorporating a proto-femonationalism to question women’s rights and mobilize conservative and far-right voters. Both situations reveal mechanisms used by the far right to adapt populist discourse to diverse contexts and audiences.