Wounded Demos

Greece?s far-right Golden Dawn party poses a quandary for democrats within the country and beyond. It bears a disturbing resemblance to neo-Nazi movements that display scant regard for democratic values. Nikos Michaloliakos, the party?s leader, is sometimes greeted by its members with Nazi-style salutes and flanked by black-clad bodyguards in combat fatigues. The party?s supporters chant racist rhetoric and have been associated with tens of violent attacks against immigrants. Yet it won 7 percent of the vote in elections last year, taking 18 seats in parliament. Democrats can hardly dismiss such expressions of popular support. For more than a year, the authorities reacted timidly to mounting evidence of the party?s violent nature. That changed two weeks ago when Pavlos Fyssas, a 34-year-old anti-racism rapper, was murdered by a Golden Dawn supporter.

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