"On the black continent"the book that tells the story of the right in the world

“Salvini and Le Pen are very lukewarm in supporting Moscow, however they have never really given up on Putin, ‘because they know that there will come a time when Russia will still be there and still powerful. Salvini and Le Pen are political animals and they are very be careful not to completely break that bond.” The book ‘In the Black Continent’ (Rizzoli publisher) by Francesco Cancellatodirector of Fanpage.it, is a journey into the European right to conquer Europe. Canceled examines the rise of the right in Germany, Sweden, Poland, Spain, Hungary, France and Italy. The links with Trump, with Putin’s Russia, with the El Yunque sect in Mexico are highlighted, passing through the national-conservative propaganda of CitizenGo, from the anti-abortion and anti-gay lawyers of the European Center of Law and Justice to their Polish allies of Ordo Iuris, from the Brazilian crusaders of Tradicao, Familia and Propriedade to the pro-life galaxy of the World Congress of Families, from the climate deniers of the Heartland Institute to their German associates of Eike. Unfortunately, there is no reference to the far-right’s ties with Israel and Netanyahu’s Likud.

“Seen from above – writes Cancellato – this network looks a lot like ‘The Movement’ and Steve Bannon’s design. And if there is a nucleus, a permanent center of gravity of this conservative international, it is called the Conservative Political Action Conference, otherwise known as Cpac. Organized by the American Conservative Union, it is a sort of world congress of all the right-wing parties.” “Reading the list of speakers at the CPACs that took place in 2023 – continues Cancellato – offers the perfect family portrait of the global right, which transcends nations, continents and political families: in the USA there are Steve Bannon and Donald Trump; in Australia there is the leader of Ukip Nigel Farage, the man of Brexit; in Brazil there is Jair Bolsonaro; Steve Bannon is still in Mexico City together with the Argentine President Javier Milei. The only CPAC in Europe is organized in Budapest by the Center for Fundamental Rights, a Hungarian research institute. It is in fact officiated by Viktor Orban, who acts as host by virtue of his friendship with Donald Trump.

In 2023, at the CPAC in Budapest, there were right-wing politicians and activists from over 20 countries, among which Santiago Abascal of Vox and Eduardo Bolsonaro, third son of the former Brazilian President, stood out. Giorgia Meloni also participated in two CPACs, the last one on February 26, 2022 in Orlando, Florida, a few hours after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. And Matteo Salvini also attended the 2019 event, but, unlike Meloni, he did not speak from the stage.” Cancellato underlines: “The right is winning the cultural battle almost everywhere. There is a phrase from Steve Bannon, Trump’s ideologue, that can be read behind every story, in every country: ‘I think Vox is introducing the issues it talks about into mainstream politics. Those ideas will end up pushing centrist parties to the right.’ It is a process found in Spain, France, Sweden and Germany. It can also be seen in Italy, where for years the demands of right-wing parties such as FdI and the League have been part of a political alliance with forces affiliated with the EPP and which over time have become hegemonic, relegating FI and the moderate area of coalition to a completely ancillary role”.