2016 has seen a sharp rise in 'populist politics'.
Most people are slow to change, and want security and certainty. Economic and social change causes uncertainty, fear and anxiety.
People feel they are not listened too. Dangerously there is a growing tide of misinformation (e.g. Boris Johnson's newspaper column that deliberately and falsely claimed that the EU banned curved bananas and cucumbers) that is taken as truth. There is a growing feeling of anti-elitism, especially against international elites. Fear and anger are channelled against scapegoats - bankers, migrants.
Populists claim that bringing back manufacturing and heavy industry to their countries is the answer. This ignores or does not realise that global changes mean this will not happen.
Us and Them leads to racism, the perception of 'too many' [of another nationality, migrants, another religion] being the cause. Labelling them 'racist' can be counterproductive; the working class has been called 'racist' so often, they become desensitised to its condemnation and the word now has less impact. They also often state that they have good relations with specific individuals - e.g. neighbours - and they feel this means they are not racist.
We need a new form of liberalism that is more sensitive to feelings, especially as recent changes in culture (LGBT, gender rights, etc.) have been fast. These have provoked a backlash from the less-educated.
Current issues over identity, control over borders, and the economy, risk us going back to nationalism and the win/lose politics of the 1930s - the ugly populism.
Source: Radio 4 programme series New World - episode Us Versus Them broadcast Wed. 4th Jan. 2017. Listen now http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b086s60b or download podcast for later listening http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p04m7t49, but not sure how long these will be available.
