Throughout the advanced capitalist world and beyond, a xenophobic, nostalgic nationalism is taking shape. A flock of old and new leaders are rising up, declaring that our best days are behind us and that they are the most qualified to build a better yesterday. Forget about the future, they say, the past is now the place to be — but not everyone is invited.

In the US, Donald Trump is heading to the White House after famously promising to “Make America Great Again” and bring back “the good old days,” while proposing a ban on all Muslim immigration to clear the way. In France, Marine Le Pen tops the polls with similar incantations: eulogies on a proud past, blaming “the Muslim threat” for its demise. In Russia, Vladimir Putin appeals to the country’s historic greatness to attack the LGBTQ community and consolidate his power.

Around the world — from Britain to Turkey to the Philippines — we see variants of the same theme: a nostalgic fervor for a proud past, coupled with a hostility toward “outsiders.” Imaginations of this past differ depending on the nation but, ultimately, they amount to the same thing: a phantom homeland with a strong sense of belonging.