Hierarchy — Fundamental Law of Family and Nation

When it comes to nationalism and right-wing ideologies, family is of supreme importance. According to such beliefs, family is at the centre and at the centre of the family is a man. A man sits at the head of the table, for the man is the one who brings food to the table. As far as such a traditional family is concerned, one sin is bigger than the rest. It is the sin of disobeying—of not submitting to the hierarchy.

Since 2018, the Croatian Football Association has labelled itself as a family. Before they went to Germany, the Croatian team visited Pope Francis in Vatican City, where the president of the Croatian FA Marijan Kustić told the Pope that the most important values of the Croatian team were faith in God, love for the homeland, and family. In the last six years, under the management of Zlatko Dalić, Croatia has experienced the most successful era in its young history, acquiring two World Cup medals, one silver and one bronze, as well as another silver medal in the UEFA Nations League. Dalić, while visiting the Pope, said family values such as community, love, trust, friendship, cooperation and respect were the foundation of the team he coached.

In the first match of Euro 2024, Croatia lost three-nil to Spain. After being tackled in the opponent’s box, Bruno Petković, a Croatian striker, took the ball and missed the subsequent penalty. According to Zlatko Dalić, Petković was not supposed to be the one to take the penalty as it was not his duty.

I saw Dalić at a press conference before the match against Albania and asked him: “What does hierarchy mean to you, and how important is it to you that every player in your team knows his role?”

“Everything we have achieved so far is due to collectivity and hierarchy,” he told me. “Sure, having quality is paramount, but right behind quality is order and hierarchy, which have always ruled the Croatian national team. For me, as a coach, that is very, very important, just like it is for the senior players. When it comes to hierarchy, we are impeccable. It is very important!” The press conference finished and it was raining. I went to the city centre and got drawn into the vibe of the city. Hamburg has a reputation as one of the most liberal cities in Germany. I’m not talking about politics. I’m talking about people. One doesn’t need to spend much time there to figure out the people of Hamburg are slightly different.

Apart from the famous Hamburger SV, there is another football club in the city, St. Pauli, which is a Mecca of hard-core leftists. It is a club that openly opposes right-wing ideologies and, above all, the final stage of nationalism—Nazism. Walking down Reeperbahn, the most famous street in Hamburg, that happens to be in the St. Pauli area, you can see many alternative people, often with ‘Antifa’ or ‘FCK NSZ’ badges pinned to their caps or jackets. The place is full of punks with pierced noses and inked necks.

In my mind, being against something will never make you truly liberal, and there is a good chance you will end up being just as oppressive yourself. But when it comes to Travellers, homeless, gays and prostitutes, they are tolerant indeed. And that is the part of the left spectrum I love.

Europe has leaned to the far-right. Europe has fairly leaned to the right. So-called hard-right and far-right politicians occupy around a quarter of the seats in the new convocation of the European Parliament. Europe is rejecting the idea of globalisation — quite a few countries are contracting back to within their own borders. If the idea of globalisation is aborted, chances are big that nationalism is on the rise. Football and nationalism more often than not — especially in the season of national tournament — go hand in hand. By the end of the tournament in Germany, we will have known all the national flags and anthems. Those are the main symbols of a nation. Nationalism is a central ideology of the far-right.

By extension, patriarchy means one or more men exerting absolute authority over the community as a whole. Back in the day, a king was the head of the table. In the absence of the king, the concept of God took the role of a rule-maker. At the same time, women knew their roles—most of the time. When they didn’t obey the hierarchy, they were called witches, and burnt alive. In the meantime, Croatia is no longer ruled by a king (some European countries still are—de facto), but a strong hierarchical system is still in place. A prime minister comes first, and then whoever comes second.

At the same time, democracy was invented as a rule of the people. Therefore, the people should be at the top of the table, but, the general worldwide feeling seems to be that the politicians elected by the people are out to serve themselves rather than the people.

Have you noticed how political parties always unite when asking people to vote? While campaigning, they can’t agree on a single topic, but when it comes to voting, they all have the same agenda—to get as many voters as possible. Regardless of the results, they are at the head of the table. The more seats, the more authority.

The further right on the spectrum a political party is, the more important family becomes. The ultra-far-right goes as far as building walls between nations so people who are not alike don’t mix. If foreigners with different traditions arrive at the family, they endanger the hierarchy, because they bring new and different roles.

Therefore, the nation is the most essential part of the right-wing ideology, working the same as family but on a larger scale. That’s why, most of the time, nationalists don’t accept differences. They are afraid of them because they challenge the status quo.

As Nick Hayes wrote in his ‘Book of Trespass’: “Family values are the internalised code of nationalism, the matrix that defines the right and the wrong sort of person within the borders.”³²

I’m not saying that family values are not beautiful per se. They certainly are. But it is probably the right moment to say that I’m approaching this topic from the perspective of someone who was never taught the concept of family. In my family, the idea of family was simply never talked about. No one ever told me that family is the most important thing in the world.

Perhaps that is why I have a problem with hierarchy. Maybe I am just conditioned not to submit to authorities. I believe all people are equal. Only borders can define a specific nation. Without borders, we are equal to the next man/woman—meaning there is no hierarchy either. Or, in John Lennon’s words: “Imagine there’s no countries, it isn’t hard to do…”