In the media
01.10.2020

Mark Kayser weighs in on US election debate in an interview with Arte Journal

Commenting on Trump statements, Kayser says far-right groups are “direct threat to American democracy”.

In the first presidential debate between Donald Trump and Joe Biden on Tuesday, many noted that the President's message to the far-right group Proud Boys was to “stand down and stand by” – a statement later celebrated on social media by supporters of the group.

Mark Kayser, Professor of Applied Methods and Comparative Politics at the Hertie School, noted in an interview with Arte Journal that the Proud Boys were established in 2016, the same year the Trump administration won the White House.

“They can be recognised in particular by the fact that they glorify violence,” he said. “They focus on masculinity, in opposition to feminism.”

Kayser sees the growing number of white supremacist groups with great concern.

“It’s scary that so many armed militia groups are tolerated in the US,” he says. “This is a clear case of intimidation and, in the context of an election, a direct threat to American democracy.”

Watch the interview here (in German).

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Views expressed by the author/interviewee may not necessarily reflect the views and values of the Hertie School.

More about Mark Kayser

  • Mark Kayser, Professor of Applied Methods and Comparative Politics