The Far Right and the Law: How Ethno-Nationalist Ideology Undermines the Rule of Law
What does it mean if the state is to grant fundamental rights only to certain groups—such as those who belong to an ethnically defined „German people“? Such views are no longer a marginal phenomenon but have become part of public debate. They represent a nationalist legal ideology that calls into question the core principles of the democratic rule of law. The Forum Recht Foundation is addressing this issue.
On September 10, 2025, on „Let’s Talk About Law,“ we’ll be speaking with historian Prof. Dr. Uwe Puschner and legal scholar Prof. Dr. Alexander Thiele about the ideological and legal foundations of a way of thinking that not only calls individual rights into question but also challenges the legal foundations of our democratic order.
What characterizes ethno-nationalist legal thinking, both historically and today? And how are legal concepts strategically reinterpreted to undermine or invert the principles of the rule of law, such as equality and human dignity? A particular focus is placed on the often-overlooked impact of such reinterpretations in ordinary law—such as labor law or tenancy law—that is, those areas of law that structure our daily lives together. This is not merely about attacks on the relationship between citizens and the state, but about far-reaching attempts to legitimize social inequality through the law.
At the same time, we examine the question of how the law actually works. Why does it allow for room for interpretation? How does this enable individual justice? And how can it be abused?
We cordially invite the audience to participate in the discussion by asking questions.
More About the Guests
Prof. Dr. Uwe Puschner is a historian and professor of modern history at the Friedrich Meinecke Institute at Freie Universität Berlin. His research focuses, among other things, on the völkisch ideology and movement in the 19th and 20th centuries. He is a permanent member of the „Centre d’Études Germaniques Interculturelles de Lorraine“ (CEGIL) at the Université de Lorraine and a visiting lecturer at the Universities of London (Canada), Metz, and Montpellier.
Prof. Dr. Alexander Thiele He is a professor of political theory and public law at the university faculty of the BSP Business & Law School in Berlin, where he also serves as vice rector for research and interdisciplinarity. In recent years, he has focused his research primarily on issues of democratic theory and political theory and has published numerous books and articles in this field.
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Photo credits: Puschner – private / Thiele – Bogdan Hinrichs