7. Nationalism and Globalism

While the globalist position was dominating many countries at the beginning of the 21st century, it nowadays faces a growing nationalist opposition around the world. In a nutshell, globalists argue that borders of any kind are unnecessary in an interdependent world and that their removal is vital for peaceful interactions between states and their economic progress. Nationalists, on the other hand, emphasize the crucial importance of borders for the protection or conservation of industries and identities. In this section, we will outline the general stance of each ideology towards foreign trade and migration.

Nationalism

Nationalism is a set of politico-economic beliefs that promotes the identification with a country and the commonality of its people. Politically, nationalists emphasize that a nation should have self-determination rather than being ruled by a foreign empire. Economically, nationalists promote protectionist policies, i.e., the creation of trade barriers to reduce the nation´s dependence on imported goods and services. Nationalism became one of the most important social forces in the 19th and 20th century with many scholars regarding it as the most important cause of World War I and World War II. Nationalists built upon the concept of a “national identity”: For them, the nation has a powerful psychological component – people are born into a nation with a particular language, history, and culture, and this sense of belonging provides a bond between a group of people (the nation) that should be used in order to promote the interests of said group. The belief system of nationalists varies depending on its intensity: While moderate nationalists emphasize a nation´s self-determination, more radical nationalists also strive to exclude or oppress people that are not part of that nation. Today, many scholars argue that nationalism is often employed to justify exclusionary policies which seek to privilege the nation over others, especially in an era of growing resentment towards globalization and immigration.

Globalism

Globalism is a school of thought which promotes globalization, i.e. the expansion and intensification of political, social, cultural, and economic relationships across state borders. It is an ancient phenomenon, and early globalization was pioneered by empires and explorers. Economic globalization accelerated in the nineteenth century, while the 20th and 21st centuries saw different waves of globalization. Globalism has significantly altered economic forces. The products that we purchase are the result of huge planet-wide chains, with resource extraction, industrial production, and trade taking place across the world where prices are lowest. Nowadays, globalism is also closely associated with neoliberalism as both ideologies promote the free flow of goods, capital, services, and workers. As such, globalism faces similar praise and criticism. On the one hand, proponents argue that it created a considerable amount of wealth and social progress. On the other hand, critics counter that it benefits only a small part of the world population at the price of socio-economic and environmental damages.