Nouvelle Résistance
Encyclopedia
Nouvelle Résistance was a French far right group created in August 1991 by Christian Bouchet
as an offshoot of Troisième Voie (Third Way), which was headed by Bouchet. Dissolved in 1997, NR described themselves as "national revolutionary" and part of the National Bolshevism
and Third Position
movement. It succeeded to the Troisième voie and Jeune Europe
, a movement created in the 1960s by Jean-François Thiriart
.
NR was both anti-Communist and anti-capitalist as well as ecofascist
. In 1989, then general secretary of the Troisième Voie, Christian Bouchet stated that there were two possible alternatives: either present themselves as a "National Revolutionary wing/margin of the National Front" or present itself as a "contest movement" which supported "all forms of contest (regional
, ecologic, social, popular," etc. . The NR first decided to oppose the National Front "reactionary right" and enacted a policy of "the peripheries against the center," advocating for the creation of an "anti-establishment front," and rejecting left/right division. Bouchet then stated that this strategy had failed, and advocated alliance with Jean-Marie Le Pen
's National Front, on a "Less Leftism! More Fascism
!" slogan .
It also supported state secularism and anti-clericalism
, and opposed United States
cultural imperialism
. Practicing a politic of entrism explicitly inspired by the Trotskyist, the NR also infiltrated the national direction of the deep ecology
movement Earth First . NR was also anti-Zionist. They transformed themselves in the Union des cercles résistance en Autumn 1996 during its third congress held in Aix-en-Provence
, from which the Unité radicale
movement was created.
Christian Bouchet
Christian Bouchet is a French far right journalist and politician. An exponent of the Third Position, with sympathies to National Bolshevism....
as an offshoot of Troisième Voie (Third Way), which was headed by Bouchet. Dissolved in 1997, NR described themselves as "national revolutionary" and part of the National Bolshevism
National Bolshevism
National Bolshevism is a political movement that claims to combine elements of nationalism and Bolshevism. It is often anti-capitalist in tone, and sympathetic towards certain nationalist forms of communism and socialism...
and Third Position
Third Position
Third Position is a revolutionary nationalist political ideology that emphasizes its opposition to both communism and capitalism. Advocates of Third Position politics typically present themselves as "beyond left and right", instead claiming to syncretize radical ideas from both ends of the...
movement. It succeeded to the Troisième voie and Jeune Europe
Jeune Europe
Jeune Europe was an Europeanist movement formed by Jean Thiriart in Belgium. Emile Lecerf, a later editor of the Nouvel Europe Magazine, was one of Thiriart's associates....
, a movement created in the 1960s by Jean-François Thiriart
Jean-François Thiriart
Jean-François Thiriart was a Belgian far right politician.-Youth:Initially a Socialist, Thiriart eventually adopted a form of non-Marxist, Nationalist Socialism....
.
NR was both anti-Communist and anti-capitalist as well as ecofascist
Ecofascism
Ecofascism, can be used in two different ways:# The term is used as a pejorative by political conservatives, centrists, and leftists to discredit deep ecology, mainstream environmentalism, radical environmentalism and other ecological positions....
. In 1989, then general secretary of the Troisième Voie, Christian Bouchet stated that there were two possible alternatives: either present themselves as a "National Revolutionary wing/margin of the National Front" or present itself as a "contest movement" which supported "all forms of contest (regional
Regionalism (politics)
Regionalism is a term used in international relations. Regionalism also constitutes one of the three constituents of the international commercial system...
, ecologic, social, popular," etc. . The NR first decided to oppose the National Front "reactionary right" and enacted a policy of "the peripheries against the center," advocating for the creation of an "anti-establishment front," and rejecting left/right division. Bouchet then stated that this strategy had failed, and advocated alliance with Jean-Marie Le Pen
Jean-Marie Le Pen
Jean-Marie Le Pen is a French far right-wing and nationalist politician who is founder and former president of the Front National party. Le Pen has run for the French presidency five times, most notably in 2002, when in a surprise upset he came second, polling more votes in the first round than...
's National Front, on a "Less Leftism! More Fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
!" slogan .
It also supported state secularism and anti-clericalism
Anti-clericalism
Anti-clericalism is a historical movement that opposes religious institutional power and influence, real or alleged, in all aspects of public and political life, and the involvement of religion in the everyday life of the citizen...
, and opposed United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
cultural imperialism
Cultural imperialism
Cultural imperialism is the domination of one culture over another. Cultural imperialism can take the form of a general attitude or an active, formal and deliberate policy, including military action. Economic or technological factors may also play a role...
. Practicing a politic of entrism explicitly inspired by the Trotskyist, the NR also infiltrated the national direction of the deep ecology
Deep ecology
Deep ecology is a contemporary ecological philosophy that recognizes an inherent worth of all living beings, regardless of their instrumental utility to human needs. The philosophy emphasizes the interdependence of organisms within ecosystems and that of ecosystems with each other within the...
movement Earth First . NR was also anti-Zionist. They transformed themselves in the Union des cercles résistance en Autumn 1996 during its third congress held in Aix-en-Provence
Aix-en-Provence
Aix , or Aix-en-Provence to distinguish it from other cities built over hot springs, is a city-commune in southern France, some north of Marseille. It is in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, in the département of Bouches-du-Rhône, of which it is a subprefecture. The population of Aix is...
, from which the Unité radicale
Unité Radicale
Unité Radicale was a French far-right political group close to the Third Position and National Bolshevism thesis. It was founded in June 1998 from the merger of Groupe Union Défense and Nouvelle Résistance/Jeune Résistance/Union des Cercles Résistance, issued from Nouvelle Résistance, and dissolved...
movement was created.
Further reading
- Jean-Yves Camus, « Une avant-garde populiste : « peuple » et « nation » dans le discours de Nouvelle résistance », Mots, n°55, juin 1998, p. 128-138.
- Nicolas Lebourg, Les Nationalismes-révolutionnaires en mouvements : idéologies, propagandes et influences (France : 1962-2002), Ph.D. (history) thesis, Université de Perpignan.
- Jeffrey Bale, « National revolutionary groupuscule and the resurgence of left-wing fascism : the case of France’s Nouvelle Résistance », Patterns of Prejudice, 36/3, 2002.