Geert Wilders Supporters against Akwasi: "Othering" Language on Facebook and the Construction of the Dutch "Self"

Abstract

This thesis investigates how supporters of Dutch politician Geert Wilders participate in “Othering” discourses on Wilders’ Facebook page, particularly in relation to their engagement in discussions around Dutch anti-racism activist Akwasi Owusu Ansah. It focuses on how Dutch identity is constructed and the racist and anti-immigrationist dimensions of Wilders' and his supporters’ discourses which deny migrants and people of colour “membership” of Dutch identity.

For these purposes, ​this thesis engages in a case study analysis of comments on posts about Akwasi from Wilders’ Facebook page. These comments have been analysed quantitatively with a word cloud and qualitatively with the method of critical discourse analysis (CDA). By using the concepts of “Othering” and “white innocence,” this thesis argues that the discourses of the case study construct migrants and people of colour as “Others” of a white, native Dutch "Self." Moreover, in this context these "Others" are symbolised by Akwasi as a black anti-racism activist.