Domestic Extremism in Europe - Athena Institute

It seems that the answer of Europe to these newly
emerging challenges is one that is far from the European
traditions of openness, liberalism, multiculturalism, tol-
erance, pluralism and humanism; values that are all
deeply rooted in European societies ever since the En-
lightenment. Thus, it seems that the continent is starting
to go slowly backwards.
Domestic extremist groups and extremist parties are
managing to influence the general public and via the
electorate, mainstream politics. In Greece, Hungary, Italy,
England etc. many minority communities, especially the
Roma and Muslims cannot be sure if their country is will-
ing or capable of defending them. The insecurity of such
communities and the growing poverty that follows the
great recession, paired up with the slow dissolution of
the welfare state lead to conflicts within European socie-
ties. The majority sees minorities and immigrants as exis-
tential threats and minorities are afraid of the majority
due to the state’s diminished capability or willingness to
protect them from extremism.
The disbandment of Roma camps and the expulsion of
EU citizens of Roma origin from Italy and France show
that even “old” European countries use new, radical ap-
proaches towards immigration and handle these issues as
Domestic Extremism in Europe - Threat Landscape 78