Paper short abstract:

”Eschatological populism” as exemplified by the apocalyptic Great Replacement myth argues for a covert genocide of the ”white race” undertaken by ”the elite.” In this paper, I discuss its features and how such conspiracism emerges as a discursive strategy that can support a comprehensive worldview.

Paper long abstract:

I understand conspiracist myths such as The Great Replacement as instances of ”eschatological populism.” This term refers to the discursive practices of both right-wing populist politicians and far-right groups who construct a world where the malicious ”elite” is attempting a slow, covert genocide of ”the people.” In the Western countries, this threat typically concerns the white majority population that the elusive elite is purposefully replacing with immigrants, usually from the Middle East. Supporting a (mostly) secular ideology with an apocalyptic narrative, eschatological populism talks of an imminent existential threat to a perceived homogeneous culture. The idealized concepts of ”the people” and ”our culture” are painted as natural and semi-eternal, while their anthropogenic eradication looms near.

In this paper, I will first quickly discuss the connections between conspiracism and populism. Next, I will sum up the eschatological features of such populism based on theories of apocalypticism. Finally, I will demonstrate the discursive use of these features by specifically concentrating on The Great Replacement in the U.S. This conspiracist narrative is presented in the form of a secular prophecy, offering a teleological explanation of history. It is typically used for strategic purposes as a political response to societal change, but the most extreme versions of this racist myth emerge as individual acts of violence such as the Christchurch mass murder of 2019. In addition to a political strategy, The Great Replacement can thus form an explanatory framework for interpreting the world and reinforcing dangerous convictions.