Paper short abstract:

Without misrecognising the invaluable insight gained from participant observation, the author will discus other forms of field work on "ugly movements" and stress the importance ethnographic writing, while reflecting on her own encounter with the Spanish far-right as a feminist scholar.

Paper long abstract:

Long-term immersion and face-to-face-interaction in place-bound marginal communities is both part of the identity of anthropologists and an open debate within the discipline. As Nader (1975) pointed out, this equation might constrain the much-needed engagement of anthropologists with the political problems of our times. Furthermore, the digital revolution has changed dramatically interactions as well as data production and access. Certainly, engaging ethnographic research with "repugnant others" challenges the mandates of participant observation, such as empathy, knowledge restitution or even fully informed consent (Harding 1991, Avanza 2008). Is face-to-face participant observation the cornerstone of ethnographic fieldwork for every research problem, even on ugly movements (Tarrow 1994)? How much distance or proximity is productive for each researcher? Could we retain the insightful strategy of "displacement" from the familiar while emancipating it from participant observation (Feldman 2011)?

In this paper I will reflect upon these questions from my own encounter with the Spanish far-right as a feminist scholar while researching on gender violence policy. Without misrecognising the invaluable ethnographic experience of face-to-face participant observation, I will argue that we should discuss other forms of data production and collection, alternative or complementary to participant observation, as well as focus on the many challenges of ethnographic writing on "ugly movements". Thinking of ethnography beyond participant observation instead of patrolling the boundaries of the discipline might be a plausible path.