How radical nationalism affects society

Radical Nationalism

Introduction

Radical Nationalism is an ideology initially developed by Arnold Vinnick. The ideology is built on the status of the state and the government at large. It also describes how affairs in the government and the administration of the country should be done. In this regard, issues such as how the law should be applied, which laws should be applied, which cultures should or should not be allowed among other dictates of life are all discussed under the Radical Nationalism belief system.

The Set of Rules Presented by Radical Nationalism

This ideology is anchored on the belief that the state is bigger than anything else is on the land. Consequently, all activities that ought to be done by the citizens and those in authority should be those that help foster national supremacy. The proponents of this ideology believe in a state that reflects the true culture of the people that make it. As such, they advocate for the creation of state religion and a code of conduct. The majority among the population ought to have their practices sanctioned by the state. On the other hand, the interests of the minority among the people in the society will not be supported. For instance, Islam is the accepted religion in the Arabic states. Therefore, other religions will always have a rough time existing freely in such states. Radical Nationalism also disregards the input of the international community. They believe that what the state pursues or intends to pursue within its operations within the country ought not to be influenced by the international community (Spitz, & Mullen, 2010).

States that pursue this ideology also embrace expansionist and interventionist policies outside their territory. The countries therefore treasure going to external wars and fights in order to boost their moral standing among the community of nations. Finally, the nations that are guided by this ideology practices conservative lifestyles such as not allowing abortion, practicing traditional forms of marriage and no same sex marriages as well as barring women from participating in combat zones but instead have all men acquire military training (Nussbaum, 1988).

The Southern California Nationalist Movement

The southern California nationalist movement, also referred to as the So-Cal, was one such ideal example of a radical nationalist movement. The movement was founded with the intent to spread white supremacist movement ideologies among the people. The proponents of this movement used music as their primary weapon. Punk music groups were thus born because of this. The agenda was to reach to the people’s hearts in a soft but effective and sure way. Through their music, Punk singers spread messages laced with racial intolerance (Morino, 2010). It urged the whites to appreciate their race and culture while at the same time it demonized the blacks as evil and unfit to be recognized as American citizens. The result of this was as expected. Shortly after the release of their racist songs, tension and resentment built between the two races, pitting one against the other. They drew weapons against one other as well as verbally expressing their hatred and scorn. The white supremacists felt they were victories and had just managed to achieve the results they intended to achieve (Anti-defamation League. (n. d.).

Means of spreading the ideology

The known opinion makers in the most daring states such as the Arab states out rightly advocate for the ideology. However, in other states, the ideology is propagated through such social unifiers such as music, plays, and other communicative forms of media. The state governments in these states (which in most cases have the backing of the majority and have the agenda of people at their hearts) promote music and arts that spread the message of radical nationalism (Valdemar, 2007).

Radical nationalism in America was and has been attempted to be spread using rock music. This style of music started gaining fame in the early 1970s mainly performed by whites. The most famous rock music was referred to as Punk music-which started in California. Punk music was played by the kids of the whites who were mainly in their adolescent age. Music here was more than entertainment. They contained messages of hate and carried heavy racist ideologist. One particular brand of rock music was one type referred to as metal rock music. This type of music spread the message of racism very openly to the people. The lyrics as well as the titles of the songs carried a lot of heavy resentment for the blacks (Morino, 2010).

America had been predominantly a white nation with a heavy presence of racists ever since attaining its independence. The aim of the musicians, particularly the rock musicians, was to ignite passions along the racial divide with the aim of imposing a one-race ideology to the system. This was a form of radical nationalism since specific cultures and practices were being propagated (Spitz, & Mullen, 2010).

The ugly side of the American clamor for Radical Nationalism

In America, the quest to have a white race and culture dominating the government was not a good one. In many aspects, there were injuries, suffering, and fatalities that the blacks, who in this case were the minorities, suffered. Several white supremacy movements sprang up to advance the agenda by literally killing the blacks and forcing them to submit to white dominance. The music they played advocated for a war and total elimination of the blacks through planned violence. This encouraged the many white supremacist movements to spring up across America (Valdemar, 2007).

The Skin heads gang

This white supremacists gang took the words of the rock musicians seriously and exercised them by killing the blacks. They were motivated by the agenda and the message in the music. It is estimated that there were nearly 1500 members of this gang in each state. Their agenda included physically attacking the blacks, sometimes killing them and spreading hate messages against the blacks as a way of demoralizing them. The rich white business and property owners aided to advance this agenda by funding white supremacists. The skinheads were more of a cultic group that had the backing of other criminal gangs and created terror at the residence of the blacks (Azerrad, 2002).

The Black Flag Band, Circle Jerk and T. S. O. L

The Black Flag was one of the most lethal and racially intolerant rock music bands. It was composed of purely white musicians who were drawn from the influential families of the whites. They composed songs that carried the message of hate and intolerance against the blacks. The kind of message that they spread was a mixture of the leftist ideologies as well as radical nationalism. They held the country at ransom for a while with their threateningly inciting music. Furthermore, they also had little regard for responsible artistry. Theirs was full of irresponsible hate messages that pitted the blacks against the whites. Circle Jerk and T. S. O. L were also formed to carry out the same agenda as the Black flag. The founders intended to create animosity between the two distinct races. California during this time was notorious for racism more than any other state in the US. It was also seen as the center of American life and cultures. Virtually all the best-known musicians and trendsetters at that time came from California. It was in the knowledge domain of the white supremacists to choose California as their springboard state to launch the radical ideologies and they succeeded in reaching to and influencing the other less influential states (Azerrad, 2002).

Radical Nationalism and Arts

Artists, who include musicians, actors, and playwrights among others, are highly valued in the states that practice radical nationalism. The leaders of these countries have given them a higher social status than the rest of the people. In this regard, they earn better wages, have easier access to the authorities and can dine with the ruling class more than the rest of the population. In this regard, some castes in society have learned to hold them in high esteem and perhaps resentment. The basic reason why they are the most valuable pillars to such governments is that they help in spreading the message to the people, which is the government’s main problem. Being a controversial ideology that can easily backfire if not supported by the masses, radical nationalism needs to be spread to the people through a medium they can easily consume it and wholly appreciate. The government has therefore found the artists the best medium to use since they have their own unrivalled place in the hearts of the people (Valdemar, 2007).

Music is considered one of the softest forms of art among the others such as poet and playwrights. Punk music group was thus the US government’s best tool to use at that time. In today’s world radical nationalism ahs lost ground. Most of the states that initially practiced it have found it unsustainable (Morino, 2010). One particular reason that has forced them to abandon the agenda is the issue of international trade. It is virtually impossible for any country to successful thrive without participating in international trade, an agenda that would not have been possible with radical nationalism. It is only in repressive states such as North Korea, where the ideology is still being practiced, to the disadvantage of the citizens who live a squalid life.