Abstract

Famous for his declaration on the end of history after free-market liberaleconomy triumphed over communism at the end of the Cold War, FrancisFukuyama is back to elucidate on the recent rise of identity politics inthe second decade of the twenty-first century. Starting with the vote bythe British electorate to leave the European Union, we have seen therise of more populist leaders such as Donald Trump, Viktor Orban, andGeert Wilders using the rhetoric of identity to rile up voters. While thereis a growing body of literature on the subject, what Fukuyama does bestis explaining a complex phenomenon in a simple yet elegant prose tomake his arguments digestible to a wider audience and thus, helpinghim make a case on the danger of ignoring identity politics and its roots.