Archive - Conference Papers

The Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands (NPD) has survived transformations in the German political landscape and overcome persistent infighting in order to become the oldest existing right-wing extremist party in Germany. Between 1996 and 2011, the NPD has attempted to distance itself from its past as a welfare chauvinist party and appear instead more viable to the electorate. This scholarly research argues that the NPD has attempted to make inroads into mainstream society by moderating its ideology, but a thorough investigation of primary and secondary sources proves that the party still adheres to an extremist agenda. Unlike previous analyses that have focused primarily on party strategy, personalities and subcultures closely associated with the NPD, this research concentrates strictly on ideology. The argument is comprised of four different subjects that serve to demonstrate the contradictions between the NPD's desired image and its actual ideology. Globalization and family policy represent two instances where the party has attempted to moderate its rhetoric by supporting popular initiatives, such as increased social welfare benefits and the enforcement of tighter financial regulations in light of the current economic crisis. However, within these same issues, the NPD reveals a clear preference for adopting ethnocentric programs that assist with the creation of the party's desired Volksgemeinschaft. On the other hand, the NPD has approached topics such as immigration and historical revisionism in the same manner that it has for nearly a half-century. The party demands the repatriation of all foreigners who do not possess an adequate reason to stay in Germany and continues to relativize the legacy of the Third Reich. By contrasting newly-emphasized subjects such as globalization and family policy with more traditional NPD issues including immigration and historical revisionism, this analysis establishes that the NPD's efforts to moderate its ideology have been limited and inconsistent.