The Yellow Vests defy classification into left or right political camps.
Evidence
The longer passage from Traverso’s essay expatiates on this point: “Observers have been surprised and puzzled by the unusual forms, symbols, and practices of the Gilets Jaunes. Everybody recognizes the protest’s radicalism, determination, and remarkable duration, but their movement remains in many respects a strange and unclassifiable object, either naïvely idealized as the announcement of revolution or obtusely stigmatized as dangerous and potentially ‘proto-fascist.’ The Gilets Jaunes are supported by both the Left and the Right but claim their independence; they do not accept any political representation or recuperation.” — Aris Komporozos-Athanasiou, Speculative Communities, 527
Categorization
Category: Contrarian or Surprising Claims
- XREF: Parallels the book’s core example of speculative, non-programmatic populism that votes ‘against its interests’ — connects to reader’s financialized populism argument.