Find French Populism And Discourses On Secularism Illustrated By Per-Erik Nilsson Shown In Document

Nilsson takes a religious studies approach to analyse the intersections of secularism, nationhood and populism in contemporary France.
This book provides insight into the French and European radicalnationalist ideology and activism, and contributes to our understanding of the complex relationship between religion and the state in contemporary Europe and beyond.


When Marine Le Pen became the leader of the radical nationalist and populist party National Front in, she made clear that secularism was a core value of party.
This signalled a significant shift in the party's rhetorical strategies and previous reluctance to embrace secularism, Nilsson argues that this conspicuous appropriation first came about as a logical result

of the obsession of the established mainstream political parties and news media with questions of secularism, national identity and Islam.
He shows that a key player in understanding the National Front's change is the webbased journal Riposte Laïque, which has become a central actor in French radicalnationalist and antiMuslim web and streetbased activism.
For the first time, this source is examined in order to understand French radical nationalists' recent appropriation of secularism, as well as debates on secularism, national identity and Islam in France more broadly.
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