PreP-Ex | Preparing Practitioners for the Rising Threat of Anti-Authority Extremism

In recent years, the movement of so called Reichsbürger*innen has gained attention within Germany. In international contexts similar movements that attempt to eliminate democratic structures and establish a form of government according to their own ideas can be found. In Canada for example, there are the so-called Sovereign Citizens and Freeman on the Land. In both countries, relatively little is known about the followers of sovereignist and anti-authoritarian groups. This makes it difficult not only for politicians to deal with this phenomenon, but also for practitioners and employees of state institutions.

In cooperation with the Canadian Organization for the Prevention of Extremism (OPV), modus|zad looks into rising movements of sovereignism and anti-authority extremism. The aim of the first project phase is to get an precise overview of the respective movements and current dynamics in the two countries. The project not only talks to experts, examines social media content and entails a survey for loved ones, but also interviews adherents themselves. This approach reveals important perspectives that provide new insights into the motivations of supporters and the appeal of sovereignist and anti-authority extremist narratives. The knowledge collection will be used to provide information to relevant actors in the field. The results of our research are presented in three formats: 

One policy Brief for Germany and one for Canada providing policy recommendations to prevent and counter sovereignism and anti-authority extremism.