Distorting the Climate Crisis: Far Right Environmentalism with Alex Amend

The rise of far-right environmentalism is more than just a reactionary response to the climate crisis. It is an ideological framework weaponizing environmental concerns to propagate nativist and reactionary politics. Together with Alex Amend, an experienced freelance writer and researcher who has spent years studying far-right ideologies and climate change politics, we dissect the rhetoric of the climate crisis within the Far Right, including within the U.S. Republican party, while also revealing the role Gen Z Republicans play in this evolving landscape.

Don't let the greenwashing fool you. Ecofascism and econationalism are not about care for the environment. They want to preserve the environment for a very specific subset of the population, and are a veil for anti-immigration policies fueled by a desire to maintain a White patrician America. 

A case in point: the Unabomber. Ted Kaczynski's manifesto, while attacking leftism, still attracts the attention of the anarchist leftists and environmental radicals. But, its most potent influence is on the Far Right. Figures such as Tucker Carlson and Peter Thiel, as well as far-right neonazi telegram channels, use his life and work as a framework for justifying xenophobia. We review the allure of Kaczynski's legacy and the dangers posed by the Far Right's exploitation of the climate crisis. The conversation turns to the unique opportunities presented to far-right organizing in the face of climate destruction and active wildfires. 

Finally, we consider strategies to counteract this appeal and the importance of pushing narratives of abundance and justice. Join us as we navigate this complex and often disturbing intersection of far-right politics and environmentalism.

EPISODE RESOURCES

• Blood and Vanishing Topsoil by Alex Amend 
• The Arc of History Bends Towards Climate Crisis: A PRA Roundtable Discussion with Andrew Curley, Alex Amend, Tamara Toles O’Laughlin, and Shanté Wolfe
• The Rise of the American Conservation Movement by Dorceta Taylor
• The Unabomber Manifesto in Historical Context by Peter Staudenmaier
• A Mighty Forest Is Our Race: Race, Nature, and Environmentalism in White Nationalist Thought by Kevan A. Feshami
• Greenwash: Nativists, Environmentalism and the Hypocrisy of Hate by SPLC

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Far-Right Environmentalism, Republican Party, Ecofascism, Econationalism, Nativism, Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, Climate Crisis Rhetoric, Anti-Immigration Policies, Generation Z Republicans, American Conservation Movement, Great Replacement, Tucker Carlson, Peter Thiel, Neo-Nazi Telegram Channels, Inflation Reduction Act