Progressive and regressive politics in late neoliberalism Donatella dela Fata Donald Trump's victory in the 2016 US presidental election has been widely perceived as sign of the triumph of regressive over progressive movements. Similay, the Brext Felerendum has been taken as an indicator of «wave of paraciais chat tress to wash away 9 once-dominant csmopolian seatiment. While the tum of dhe century witnessed Poweeul mobilizations tr the left suchas the glbal justice movernent (think ofthe so alle "Bade of Sete” 198, the frst Werld Socal Forum held in 2001 unde the moto “Anather World Is Possbe’ or the emergence of organizations like Atac), and the 2008 finaclal esis brngh eo he fore such antissusterty movements as Occupy Wall Sree and the inignados in Spain, the last few years have been characterized by the re-emergence of the dark side of polis. Tht said, i would be a mistake to forget that inal signs of reactionary movements were already visible in Earepeffieen years ago, wlien Jorg Haider's FPO came second place inthe 1999 Austan parliamentary elections, prompting rightwing coalition governnent under chancellor Wolfgang Schisel ofthe OVP. A few yeas ltr, 202, Jean-Marie Le Pen nade ito the second round of the French presidental elections, ‘where he ulkintely lost te Jacgues Chae, Bearing those events in sind it seems sfe 10 conclude dat discontent wih neoliberal globalization hs been present on both the Left an theright for quite some dine ‘Research indicates thatthe social base of (left-wing) protest has shifted fom the industrial ‘working class, as was chameteristc of the classical labour movement, co the new middle classes, wich consited he cre ofthe new social movements ofthe 1960s and 1970s. The lobe juice movement, owever, dew attention back to mobilizations conducted by dhe loser in the process of rampant nvolieral development that has been the hallmark of recent ‘deaes, From & social point of view, it has mobilized coalitions of vehite- and bue-cll ‘workers, unemployed people and stadents as well as younger and older generations.) At the same ie, however, 3 populist right ~ building upon some ofthe grievances and conflicts elated to te various face of globalization ~ grew stronger as well, Numerous scholars have Identified the emergence oa ne cleavage between globalization's winners and loses, with the later often opposing ts cultural dimension through xenophobic sid animmigrant claims that converge in exdusive frm of nationalism = 1 should come aso suprise that moments of cis also engender political and social polarization In fc, socal movements have fequerly emerged simultaneausly on both the left and the right? However, it remains tobe seen whether the Bextor Trump campaigns con tly be conceived os pln nner ales Wea ales fx yin polities [mn what follows, will fist identity some of the main social challenges insduced by capitalise ransformations; secondly, I will dscuss some diferences ln the reatons those ccallenges have provoke hs far in terms of progressive and reressive pals; and tidy, Til saggest some polial conditions that might be conducive forthe development of either ofthe no.[Neoliberal globalization as the challenge Neoliberasm ands cris can be understood within a frame. that the polical economist Kat olay! described as a double movement in te developmen of capitalism ‘when society experiences a pish for marketizaton this is followed by the emergence of ‘counter movements seeking soil petection In his seminal book The Great Transformation (194, Pola actually aesses the inal nineteenth-centry wave of bberalism! but the parallels c the neoliberal transfomation that occured in the lst decades ofthe event entry ae apparent, Poly warned against de commodification of labour, land and money that, If lef unchecked, would ultimately desroy society. As dhe Ametican socicogist, Michae! Burawoy has pt ‘When labor power Is exchanged without protection against Injury or sickness, "unemployment of ovecemplayment, or below-subsstence wages, ce Ibor that can be textrated apy dec nes, and vers towards useessess. Equally, when lend, oF More brody athe, subject to commediicaon then it can no longer syppot the baste necessities for hum life Foaly, when money Is used to make money, for example through currency spelt, thea is value ecomes so uncer that i an no longer be weed as a means of exchange, puting businesses out of business and generating In his analyss, Polany! feused oa 2 number of specific forms that countersmovements ‘mobilizing pepe who fel Derayed hy changes suchas those priced by neolibeaism can be expected t take, Such counter-moverents, He claimed ar in fact eactive movements ~ ‘hati, thelr stance is defensive and backvardlooking. Indeed, dey are often established in ‘order to cesist an ideology that preaches the dominance of the marke ove every other aspect (of society, To give just ovo examples: in many cases, peasant rebellions broke aut when eases felt an Impl seca contac offering them at least minimal protection against he ‘whims ofthe marke ad been violated, Similarly, fod rots ave often been ncrpeted 3s ‘actions 1 the destuetion of 2 moral ean, in de course of which common lands are ‘oclosed and the markes for basic goods, sch as bread, are deregulated, History teaches us {hac countermoverents seeking the re-establishment of vadlionally guaranteed sighs ean put forwatd progressive rratves and offer more inclusive and participatory visions, but {hey can also daw a regressive models and exclusive an plebisciary Wess. ‘The poluicl implementation of neoliberal econemie dogmas has revealed certain parallels to the “Great Transformation’ as described by Polen. Aller successf resistance to rampant marke fundamentalism had brought about an expansion of social protections within nation Sates (including the socal demecrcies of the so-called “First World” and che “actually ‘nisting soils’ ofthe Second World, a general retrenchment ofthe welfare sate and a Ioader tial against state interventions retin social inequality became dominant tends. ‘With the nelibera try, apis once again began to rely (abel in ferent ways) on forms of accumulation by dispossession ~ for example by repealing laws that protected ‘cizens rights and regulated the financial mats ~ dat Marx ance destifed as «pica forms of what he called rimiive aecumalaion’.® The commodification of labour, land and money was agin pursued through the deregulation of labour markets and de dismantling of worker protections, lan-gabbing, and anew (and compeehensive) deregulation of financial pital (Once agoin, couter-frces (similar to what Polanyi had called counter-movemsats) emerged developing in two direction: some are progsesive, seeking to expand citizens” rights within fn inclusive, cosmopolitan conception; others are regressive, yeatning for a bygone order in‘which only a estcted muntber of insiders were protected. Before attending the question of how reactionary comer-avements against neolibeaism ean emerge, let me begin with 9 couple of observadons regarding the progsessive variant