The end of penal populism : the rise of populist politics

• Authors: John Pratt , Michelle Miao

Title variants

PL

The end of penal populism : the rise of populist politics

• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Penal populism has radically reshaped and reorganised many aspects of punishment in modern society. It has also shifted the emphasis from protecting the rights of individuals from excessive use of the state’s power to punish to using those powers to protect the public from individuals thought to put them at risk. In so doing, it has acted as a kind of dam, holding back the anxieties and uncertainties unleashed by the neo-liberal restructuring of these societies. However, the ascendancy of populist politics indicates that this containment role is ending. The toxic contents that had been stored behind the dam have now spread throughout the social body. This paper argues that the reasons for these developments lie in the effects of the 2008 global financial crisis and the mass movement of people around the globe. As this has occurred, penal populism has taken on a new role. It is incorporated within the broader thrust of populist politics and is used to punish and control its wider sweep of public enemies which it needs to sustain itself.

PL

Penal populism has radically reshaped and reorganised many aspects of punishment in modern society. It has also shifted the emphasis from protecting the rights of individuals from excessive use of the state’s power to punish to using those powers to protect the public from individuals thought to put them at risk. In so doing, it has acted as a kind of dam, holding back the anxieties and uncertainties unleashed by the neo-liberal restructuring of these societies. However, the ascendancy of populist politics indicates that this containment role is ending. The toxic contents that had been stored behind the dam have now spread throughout the social body. This paper argues that the reasons for these developments lie in the effects of the 2008 global financial crisis and the mass movement of people around the globe. As this has occurred, penal populism has taken on a new role. It is incorporated within the broader thrust of populist politics and is used to punish and control its wider sweep of public enemies which it needs to sustain itself.   Populizm penalny w ogromnym stopniu przeorganizował i zmienił podejście współczesnych społeczeństw do idei kary i karania. Zmienił także rozłożenie akcentów – rozpoczęło się odchodzenie od zasady ochrony praw jednostki przed potencjalnym nadużywaniem przez państwo władzy wykorzystywanej w celu ukarania danej osoby na rzecz korzystania z tej władzy, by ochronić społeczeństwo przed jednostką, która zaczęła być postrzegana jako zagrożenie dla ogółu. Proces ten działał wówczas jak swego rodzaju tama – zatrzymywał obawy i niepewności społeczne, które zostały uwolnione w procesie neoliberalizacji społeczeństw. Jednak obserwowany obecnie wzrost polityk populistycznych wskazuje, że ta retencyjna rola się skończyła, a cała toksyczna zawartość zatrzymywana dotychczas przez tę tamę rozlała się po społeczeństwie i jego instytucjach. W tekście postawiono tezę, że przyczyn tej zmiany należy szukać w globalnym kryzysie ekonomicznym z 2008 r., który doprowadził do masowych migracji na świecie. Zauważono także, że populizm penalny ma nową rolę. Został on włączony w rozwój polityk populistycznych i jest używany do uzasadniania karania oraz kontrolowania coraz szerszego kręgu osób uznawanych za wrogów publicznych.  

Keywords

EN

penal populism; populism; risk; neo-liberalism; insecurity; immigration

PL

penal populism; populism; risk; neo-liberalism; insecurity; immigration; populizm penalny; populizm; niebezpieczeństwo; neoliberalizm; zagrożenie bezpieczeństwa; migracja; penal populism; populism; risk; neo-liberalism; insecurity; immigration; populizm penalny; populizm; niebezpieczeństwo; neoliberalizm; zagrożenie bezpieczeństwa; migracja

• Publisher: Instytut Nauk Prawnych PAN / Institute of Legal Studies PAN
• Journal: Archiwum Kryminologii
• Year: 2019
• Issue: XLI/2
• Pages: 15-40

Dates

published

2019-11-26

Contributors

author

John Pratt

author

Michelle Miao

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Identifiers

DOI

10.7420/AK2019M