Ernst Niekisch and others tried to combine communist and anti-capitalist nationalist forces to overthrow the existing order of the Weimar Republic. He called this merger "National Bolshevism". During his early years in Nazi Party as SS-Gauführer, Nazi leader Heinrich Himmler worked briefly as a deputy of Gregor Strasser, then head of party propaganda department. Influenced heavily by Strasserist ideas, Himmler attacked capitalism and viewed socialism as "the natural economic system" during the 1920s.[1] Germany's Chancellor, General Kurt von Schleicher (in office 1932–33), attempted to induce the more left-wing Strasserist segment of the Nazi Party to merge with the trade unions as way of forcing Hitler to support his government, but his plan failed.[2]
The term is also used today for mutual entryism or cooperation between left and right-wing groups. For example, at a Berlin peace rally on February 24, 2023, called by Sahra Wagenknecht, leading figure of Germany's socialist Left Party, and feminist Alice Schwarzer in support of their manifesto calling for negotiations and stop of military support of Ukraine, far-right factions and pro-Russian supporters were in attendance.[3]
In 1983, the National Front was taken over by a Strasserist faction led by Nick Griffin (left) and Joe Pearce (right), who presented themselves as Third Positionists.
In the 1980s, the National Front, a British fascist party that had experienced the height of its success in the 1970s, was taken over by a Strasserist faction that referred to themselves as Third Positionist.[5] The Strasserist-led National Front was also characterised by Baker as National Bolshevist in ideology.[6] Reflecting the Nouvelle Droite's influence,[7] the Strasserist Official NF promoted support for "a broad front of racialists of all colours" who were seeking an end to multi-racial society and capitalism,[5] praising black nationalists like Louis Farrakhan and Marcus Garvey.[8] Their publication, Nationalism Today, featured positive articles on the governments of Libya and Iran, presenting them as part of a global anti-capitalist and anti-Marxist third force in international politics;[9] its members openly acknowledged the influence of Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi and his Third International Theory.[10] This may have had tactical as well as ideological motivations, with Libya and Iran viewed as potential sources of funding.[7] This new rhetoric and ideology alienated much of the party's rank-and-file membership.[11] It experienced internal problems, and in 1989 several of its senior members—Nick Griffin, Derek Holland, and Colin Todd—split from it to establish their International Third Position group.[11] One of its leaders was Roberto Fiore, an ex-member of the Italian far-right movement Terza Posizione.[12]
Baker, David L. (1985). "A. K. Chesterton, the Strasser Brothers and the Politics of the National Front". Patterns of Prejudice. 19 (3): 23–33. doi:10.1080/0031322X.1985.9969821.
Cheles, L.; Ferguson, R.; and Vaughan, M. (1992) Neo-Fascism in Europe. London: Longman.
Cingolani, Giorgio (1996) La destra in armi. Editori Riuniti. (in Italian).
Copsey, N. (2004) Contemporary British Fascism: The British National Party and the Quest for Legitimacy. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.