The men and the ruins. An approach to Argentina's extreme-right since 1983

BORIS MATÍAS GRINCHPUN

A extrema direita e o poder. Histórico, diagnóstico e perspectivas

Eulim

Lugar: Rio de Janeiro; Año: 2020; p. 266 - 306

The far-right is a recurring topic in the Argentine news cycle. Alejandro Biondini, arguably the country's best known neo-Nazi, has been regularly invited to talk shows since the 1990s (KOLLMANN, 2001; PERFIL, 2017). Ultra-Nationalist groups also make headlines frequently, like Mar del Plata's National Patriotic Forum and its shock troops La Giacchino, named after the first fallen soldier in the Malvinas War. Both organizations earned a shady reputation, harassing and assaulting Anti-Fascist activists and immigrants (RODRíGUEZ, 2016). Their actions have been possible thanks to the collusion of local authorities like Mayor Carlos Arroyo, former "carapintada" rebel and member of the far-rightist Popular Party of the Reconstruction (PPR). Behind the mixture of sarcasm and fear that plagues this coverage, a profound contempt for ideologies that openly defy the predominant democratic values could be found. A disdain which -regardless how justifiable- constitutes a serious challenge to the system?s pluralist tenets.