Fatoumatta: The book “Fake Rebels: (Bush Poetry, 2022) by Philippe Bernier Arcand delves into a significant issue within our democracies. It discusses how the backlash against political correctness has unleashed racist, sexist, and xenophobic rhetoric. The author suggests that conservative and reactionary factions are crafting narratives and adopting stances that portray them as rebels, opposing what they claim is a progressive repressive order dominating media and public spaces in liberal democracies.
The author meticulously details a journey from Quebec to the United States, passing through France and the United Kingdom, highlighting how the spirit of revolt, once prevalent among the extreme and libertarian left, has intriguingly shifted to the extreme right. This transformation occurred over time, through a deliberate and sustained effort to deconstruct and alter the prevailing Zeitgeist. Under the guise of combating “political correctness” and the notion that “one can no longer speak freely,” those labeled by Philippe Bernier Arcand as the “new rebels”—journalists, politicians, media columnists, activists, and others—have unleashed hate speech that now circulates with little to no filtration across radio broadcasts, television programs, and websites. The author reminds us that rebellion historically signified a stand against tyranny and a resistance to oppression. Yet, the populist right-wing movement has co-opted this term for its ideological battle, which fundamentally opposes the aims of progressive movements. Rebellion once meant seeking greater freedoms; now, it is also invoked to strip freedoms from vast segments of society under the pretense of falling victim to the censorship of an alleged dominant left-wing ideology.
The essay examines the phenomenon in Western societies, which is also evident in a democracy such as the Gambia. Here, rebellion is defined as going against the mainstream, exemplified by anti-feminism, climate skepticism, resistance to secularism, and calls for increased order, masculinity, and discipline in society. This countercultural movement, loud and disruptive, has taken to the streets, as seen during the anti-vaccine protests of the Covid-19 pandemic, which framed the event as a popular uprising against a global conspiracy with eugenic goals. In the past, street demonstrations and confrontations were associated with the left and progressives, advocating for more rights and freedoms. However, now the political spectrum’s opposite end also takes to the streets, adopting the progressive movement’s tactics but promoting a very conservative agenda. Philippe Bernier Arcand references the yellow vest movement and the protests for all in France, the Charlottesville demonstrations to preserve the statue of Robert Lee, and anti-immigration rallies in Quebec by far-right groups like The Pack.
Fatoumatta: I could also highlight the role of social media platforms in fostering negative populism in The Gambia. WhatsApp networks are reportedly being utilized to incite ethnic chauvinism, oppose homosexuality, secularism, and Islamic extremism, and to campaign against female genital mutilation. Additionally, these platforms are allegedly being used to disseminate conspiracy theories about the Illuminati, along with other works traditionally deemed immoral.
These movements now have global figures as their representatives, offering political and institutional responses to demands from the streets, amplified by the media. The rise of figures like Trump, Salvini, Bolsonaro, Orban, Ousman Sonko and others signals an authoritarian revival around populist leaders, reflecting a crisis in progressive thought. There’s also a backlash from those who identify as the “ordinary world,” the “real people,” the “silent majority,” the “oppressed majority”—those who feel “forgotten,” “ignored,” “humiliated” by progressive elites who they believe have neglected the Nation to favor ethnic and cultural minorities, migration, multiculturalism, and ‘borderless’ ideologies.
Why this panic and this longing for familiar landmarks, signaling a desire to return to the past? Their world is perceived as collapsing. Scientific and technical advancements, the blending of identities as described by Senghor’s concept of métissage, gender identity, and transhumanism are realities that provoke identity anxiety and what Laurent Bouvet terms cultural insecurity. This justifies a defensive reflex and rejection of what is seen as progress, which venerates otherness and embraces a world beyond the narrow confines of the Nation.
This sentiment also fosters nostalgia, a yearning for a bygone golden age, a lost paradise, and a fantasy of returning to a time when “it was better before.” The cultural and intellectual left, along with all that is associated with eras of progressive zeal—like May ’68 in France, the radical sixties in the U.S., and the Quiet Revolution in Quebec—are now subject to public examination.
While progressivism may have its excesses, as Philippe Bernier Arcand points out with specific examples, the so-called “fake rebels” seem to be driven by overturning a progressive order, methodically shifting the debate towards racist, xenophobic, and sexist topics. In reality, their adversary is progressivism itself, particularly the post-1968 anti-racist, environmental, and feminist movements, which they view as the prevailing ideologies to be combated, initially by discrediting them and labeling them as the new conformism or the party of censorship.
Fatoumatta: These “fake rebels” bring up taboo subjects that are already prevalent in public discourse. Commentators on a French TV channel regularly provoke Muslims, feminists, blacks, and Arabs, yet they claim they are silenced by the censorship of the progressive “dominant ideology.” Philippe Bernier Arcand notes that they even decry a form of left-wing McCarthyism that stifles uncomfortable debates and dismisses any pushback as “woke” or “Islamo-leftist.”
Adhering to the “New Right” tradition of Alain de Benoist, who employed Gramscian strategies to indulge his racist tendencies, these individuals embrace the concepts of movement and position warfare to culturally colonize society via the media, education, and the arts.
Consequently, the right wing now aligns itself with secularism and freedom of expression, positioning these values in opposition to what they perceive as the left’s repressive tyranny. They invoke the term democracy to challenge democratic institutions, as seen with populist leader Ousmane Sonko and his followers in Senegal.
They attempt to co-opt secularism to target religions associated with cultural minorities, specifically Islam in this context.
Furthermore, when faced with accusations of racism, they deflect the blame onto progressives, accusing them of reintroducing the concept of race into public debate, attempting to Americanize society, and marginalizing white individuals who purportedly lack defenders.
Fatoumatta: While progressivism may have its excesses, as Philippe Bernier Arcand illustrates, the so-called “fake rebels” seem driven to overturn a progressive order, methodically shifting the debate towards racist, xenophobic, and sexist topics. In reality, their adversary is progressivism itself, particularly the post-1968 anti-racist, eco-friendly, and feminist movements, which they view as the prevailing ideologies to be combated, initially by discrediting them and labeling them as new conformism or the party of censorship.
Progressives must engage and reclaim the cultural discourse because, according to Philippe Bernier Arcand, “political correctness should not devolve into political abjection.”
For nearly two decades, I have been diligently following Philippe Bernier Arcand’s work. As an intellectual steeped in culture, a political scientist, and educator, Philippe has authored multiple books. He is also a noted commentator on Canadian society and the Western world. His insights into Quebec’s democracy have been pivotal in shaping my understanding of the political values of this nation.
