“You Are Not a Racist, Right?”—Racism as a Political Activity

ABSTRACT Racism is sustained by hierarchical structures that divide people into groups based on perceived phenotypical differences. This review article examines how racism—understood as a political activity—is discursively represented in struggles over meaning through three academic lenses: scientific racism, neo‐racism, and institutional racism. These frameworks differ in focus, ranging from individual to societal levels, and in width, from narrow to broad interpretations. In practice, what counts as racism varies depending on the ideological motives of the sender. The analysis shows that rhetorical figures common in far‐right political discourse—such as dehumanization and victim–perpetrator reversal—are shaped by these ideological motives, generating contrasting perspectives on what constitutes racism. The article also demonstrates that far‐right ideology can be differentiated into several strands, ranging from radicalism to extremism, including race revolutionism, cultural nationalism, and identitarianism. Moreover, it suggests that racism is defined and strategically employed in diverse ways by political actors pursuing both racist and anti‐racist agendas. These varied forms of racism intersect with processes of identification, influencing not only what individuals or groups reject but also how they seek to be perceived. The article illustrates these dynamics through empirical examples from the Swedish context.