Being distinguished and seeking recognition of dignity can be taken as one of the drivers of nationalism. This desire to be distinguished has been existing for a long time and in today’s world, this can equally be found. For instance, Ukrainians and Chechens perceive themselves differently from Russians, Kurds distinct themselves from Turks and Iraqis, and Taiwanese want separation from China based on their distinctiveness. It is human nature that they want to be recognized by others based on their uniqueness and want to be esteemed as Francis Fukuyama writes in his book “Identity: demand for dignity and politics of resentment” that “Self-esteem arises out of esteem by others”. Some of the important features of nationalism are the concept of the nativity to soil, self-determination, and popular sovereignty.
Many scholars have worked and are still working to grasp the true essence of nationalism. Modernist theorists perceive nationalism as a modern phenomenon. Hans Kohn is one of the most prominent scholars on nations and nationalism. He maintains that due to the settlement of borders before the rise of nationalism, western European countries like (UK, France, Switzerland, and Netherland) drew their focus on the democratic procedure. Therefore, nationalism adopted the narrative to transform the oppressed inhabitants into citizens. American sociologist Charles Tilly describes this nationalism as “State-led nationalism”. On the other hand, Eastern European countries’ borders were settled after the rise of nationalism, so in Eastern Europe’s case, ethnic nationalism garnered more attention. C. Tilly mentions this as “State-seeking nationalism”. To further illustrate the distinction between civic and ethnic nationalism we have to highlight some features of both. As far as civic nationalism is concerned, it is defined by common citizenship, not distinction based on (color, creed, gender, religion, and language), and equal rights. On the other hand, ethnic nationalism bases on religion, language, customs, and the concept that nations create the states. Civic nationalism is democratic but ethnic is not. The recent wave of populism has shown an inextricable nexus between Populism and ethnic nationalism. Populism is a very complicated and contested concept but it is defined by “Cas Mudde and Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser” in the book “A very short introduction to populism” as “a thin-centered ideology that divides the society into two parts ‘the pure people’ vs. ‘corrupt elite’ and emphasizes that politics should be an expression of the general will of people”. In the current political scenario, populism revolves around a “charismatic leader” who woos the gullible people for consolidating his power. In this self-centered politics, political parties lose their significance and elections become redundant.
Populism is a very complicated and contested concept but it is defined by “Cas Mudde and Cristóbal Rovira Kaltwasser” in the book “A very short introduction to populism” as “a thin-centered ideology that divides the society into two parts ‘the pure people’ vs. ‘corrupt elite’ and emphasizes that politics should be an expression of the general will of people”. In the current political scenario, populism revolves around a “charismatic leader” who woos the gullible people for consolidating his power. In this self-centered politics, political parties lose their significance and elections become redundant.
Take the example of India, populism has decimated the Indian democracy which was considered as the greatest one. It was known for its liberal, secular and civic values but populist leader Narendra Modi corroded democratic values and changed them into a ‘kakistocracy’. An official agenda to marginalize the Muslims of India and turning India into a Hindu-dominated state is continuing unabatedly. All the institutions are under the massive clout of the BJP and playing their role in marginalizing Muslims as policemen were cited during breaking CCTV cameras to hide their partisanship when people were protesting against the citizenship bill. Most of the media channels are promoting Modi’s ideology and the ultra-nationalist mindset is being prepared. The hegemony of Hindu ideology, waning transparency of institutions, shrinking room for Muslims, and dying values of democracy are changing India into an ethnic nationalist country. Similarly, the American democracy under the stewardship of Donald Trump witnessed crisis after crisis. Donald trump’s policies to marginalize black people and his mantra of white supremacy changed the political landscape of the USA. Furthermore, the killing of George Floyd at the hands of policemen sparked protests across the country. The poor handling of the coronavirus further exposed the hollowness of populism. A country like the USA which always raised its voice to extend the notion of democracy could not maintain democracy at home. Due to the racist and exclusive approach of trump, civic nationalism eroded and ethnic nationalism gained ground. So, in the populist world, civic nationalism has disappeared and lacuna has been filled by ethnic nationalism. If populist tendency continues in the future, it can exacerbate the peace and can also intensify the conflicts and injustices in the world. Populist leaders have emerged as an image of inefficiency, ineffectiveness, imprudence, and impracticality.
