Imbrications of gender and religion in Nordic radical right populism

We examine here how issues of gender and religion are employed for ideological purposes in the discourses of radical right populist parties in Sweden and Finland. We begin with the complexity of these societies as paragons of social welfare and gender equality, within which Lutheran Christianity discreetly underpins their largely secularised character. Employing a poststructuralist methodological approach, we analyse the key political speeches of the chairpersons of the Sweden Democrats (Sverigedemokraterna) and Finns Party (Perussuomalaiset/ Sannfinländarna). We unveil a complex interplay between gender and religion; gender equality is used strategically to strengthen and legitimise the separation between ‘the people’ and racialised Others, while references to religion are employed to rank the racialised Other as ‘less than’ the secular and modern ‘people’, and to oppose alleged inquisitorial attempts on the part of progressive left and liberal parties.