Re-Imagining the Red Army Faction: An Analysis of How Neoliberal Power Reshapes Protest Narratives

This thesis project challenges the prevailing narrative surrounding the notorious West German millitant group, the Red Army Faction (RAF). The RAF is often portrayed as senselessly violent, but this thesis argues that their actions were a direct response to the repressive and violent nature of the West German state. Drawing on neoliberal critiques from Ruth Wilson Gilmore, Michael Foucault, and Louis Althusser, the thesis examines how neoliberalism creates a system of “organized abandonment” that disproportionately harms the working class while simultaneously expanding state power through surveillance and control. The thesis also explores the role of the media as an ideological state apparatus (ISA) that distorts public perception and reinforces dominant neoliberal ideology. It uses ISAs to explain how the common perception of the RAF came to be. In particular, it analyses how the Springer press obscured the RAF's material critiques and sensationalized their actions. Through an analysis of several different neoliberal power mechanisms, this thesis re-imagines the RAF’s violence as a reaction to this system, as exemplified by their targeting of symbols of capitalist imperialism, like American-owned department stores and police headquarters. By re-contextualizing the RAF's actions within the framework of neoliberal violence, the thesis offers a more nuanced understanding of their motivations and challenges the “common sense” interpretation that has shaped their legacy.