The difference between globalisation and globalism might seem obscure and unimportant, but it matters. Globalisation is a word used by economists to describe international flows of trade, investment and people. Globalism is a word used by demagogues to suggest that globalisation is not a process but an ideology — an evil plan, pushed by a shadowy crowd of people called “globalists”.
In his recent speech at the UN, Donald Trump declared: “We reject the ideology of globalism and embrace the doctrine of patriotism.” Last week he again denounced “globalists” at a campaign event, while the crowd bayed for the imprisonment of George Soros, a Jewish philanthropist regarded as the epitome of “globalism” by the nationalist right.
It is not just the radical right that attacks globalisation as an elite project. Many on the left have long argued that the international trading system is designed by the rich and harms ordinary people.