The women behind the rise of the right

[Forget skinheads in combat boots, fascism has a new face:

HER neighbours thought she was a pleasant, polite IT worker who lived with her boyfriend and his brother. Susann Dienelt enjoyed the odd drink with them in the pub, and never displayed any xenophobia other than complaining that the local Greek restaurant “stank of garlic”.

But Susann, now 39, had a secret. Her real name was Beate Zschäpe, and she was the alleged mastermind of an extreme right-wing terror cell called the National Socialist Underground (NSU).

In the biggest trial Germany has seen in decades, she’s now accused of murdering nine immigrants and a policewoman and carrying out two bombings and 15 bank robberies during a 13-year reign of terror.

But the case isn’t an isolated incident. A new report by the Expert Center on Gender and Right-Wing Extremism at the Amadeu Antonio Foundation in Germany, has revealed a rise in the number of right-wing female activists in Germany over the last 20 years. Meanwhile, the recent European elections have been hailed as a victory for the far right across Europe. From political leaders to the young girls singing Nazi anthems on the streets of Greece, women have never played a more prominent role in the far right.

“Our research has revealed that there has been a marked increase both in the number of active right-wing women as well as a growth in the number of extremist women‘s groups,” says Heike Radvan, from the Amadeu Antonio Foundation.

“The roles women take on in these groups have also expanded, from activists, street fighters and gang leaders to local government politicians, demonstration coordinators and internet activists.”

Beate – dubbed the “Nazi Bride” – is said to have fallen into the neo-Nazi scene in the early ’90s, going on to form the NSU with her two lovers, Uwe Böhnhardt and Uwe Mundlos. Authorities knew nothing about the group until late 2011, when the men killed themselves to escape capture after a robbery went wrong. Beate, meanwhile, allegedly blew up their hideout in the city of Zwickau, although supposedly damning evidence survived the blast – including videos in which the trio allegedly boasted of their crimes, and the gun used in the murders. Days later, she handed herself in, although she denied the charges and has refused to testify at her trial. So how did she manage to stay under the radar?

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