Downturns in the economy are traditionally boom-times for extremist hate organizations nowhere is that demonstrated more clearly than in Western Europe.
The recent election of British National Party leader Nick Griffin (pictured at left) to the European Parliament is just the latest sign of the political pendulum in Europe swinging to the right, ushering facists, neo-Nazis and right-wing extremists into political office as representatives of a European Union population of over 491 million people.
We need not look far for proof. In the US, membership in the Ku Klux Klan soared to an all-time high in the late 1920's before the onset of the Great Depression - just as the National Socialist Party was setting the stage for the Nazis rise to power in Germany.
Hate groups boost their numbers and garner sympathy to their cause by playing on the fears and insecurities that arise when unemployment is high, wages are low and costs soar.
Unfortunately for immigrants, minorities and members of some religious groups, extremists always have some marginalized group of people to blame for what's wrong with the world; but the cause isn't always just hatred.
The UK, the Labour party in particular, are still reeling from a slew of cabinet-level resignations in the wake of a widespread campaign finance scandal that has rocked Prime Minister Gordon Brown's political support.
The eroded support for Brown's Labour Party and dissatisfaction with the handling of the economic crisis were some of the factors that paved the way for Griffin to become the EU Parliament representative from England's North West region and fellow BNP politician Andrew Brons to represent Yorkshire and Humber.
What's the whites-only BNP about?
According to Wikipedia the BNP constitution describes their mission as being "committed to stemming and reversing the tide of non-white immigration and to restoring, by legal changes, negotiation and consent the overwhelmingly white makeup of the British population that existed in Britain prior to 1948"
The UK Guardian reports that Nick Griffin was chased from a BNP press conference today after protesters calling him a Nazi pelted him with eggs before he fled the scene.
Europeans are growing alarmed at an increasing faction of right wing political parties, each of which opposes immigration to the point of violence and openly embrace neo-Nazi ideology. But it's not just in the UK.
Who's who in Europe?
The Front National, or FN in France was founded in 1972 by Jean-Marie LePen. In addition to Holocaust denial, the party supports a range of anti-immigration platforms and neo-facist politics.
In Germany the NPD (Nationaldemokratische Partei Deutschlands) like the FN, has minimal representation in the German version of the state representative body. NDP leader Udo Voigt campaigns for white supremacy, "ethnic pride" and the ouster of "non-Germans" among other things. This rugged goose-stepper also predictably idolizes numerous figures from the Third Reich including Rudolph Hess and Adolph Hitler.
According to Wikipedia in 2008 in a document entitled "Africa Conquers the White House" the NDP claimed the election of President Barack Obama was the result of an "American alliance of Jews and Negroes."
It also suggested the wide-spread support for Obama within Germany was the result of an "African tropical disease."
In Italy, Forza Nuova is echoing the rings of Mussolini's facist state with calls for violence against non-Italian immigrants, laws against inter-racial sex and draconian nationalistic calls for ethnic and racial supremacy.
This trend warrants more mainstream media attention in the US than I've seen or read lately, even with America involved in two wars, a growing diplomatic problem in North Korea and global efforts to turn the tide of the economic crisis.
Nick Griffin speaks at a rally with ex-Klan leader David Duke.
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