Between continuities and social change: extra-parliamentary radical left in post-communist Romania

The tendency to focus on formal organisations in Central and Eastern Europe overlook the emergence of fringe groups that developed a critical position towards the post-communist transition. By focusing on the post-communist extra-parliamentary radical left in Romania, this article analyses the influence of opportunity structures and of the legacies of the past on the development and social resonance of left-wing actors in the post-communist context. In order to emphasise the particularities of the post-communist extra-parliamentary radical left in Romania, this article looks at the interactions of these actors with the anti-corruption movement that seeks legitimacy within the same broader environment. The different outcomes and social resonance of the radical left actors, on the one hand and of the networks created during the anti-corruption protests of 2015 and 2017, on the other hand, prove that mobilisations framed around the issue of corruption have a greater degree of acceptability and are considered more legitimate in the Romanian public space than those framed in terms of social and economic rights.