The Trickster archetype and the group matrix: Attacks on democracy: The drag queen, the rap artist and the alt-right

The Jungian archetype of the ‘Trickster’ maintains a continual presence in liminal spaces vital to human social, political, economic, and technological affairs. By exploring the underlying power relations through the lenses of shadow, mirror, and light, I want to engage in a critical discourse on our responsibilities as clinicians, consultants, and educators. This discourse is particularly relevant to the ethical challenges posed by recent anti-democratic movements orchestrated by charismatic trickster leaders such as Donald Trump, Tommy Robinson, Andrew Tate and Elon Musk. I examine the concept of trickster leadership, contrasting it with countercultural expressions of trickster rebellion in rap music and the drag queen performer, recognizing that the trickster archetype exists both in obscurity and illumination. As is evident from the re-election of Donald Trump and the rise of right-wing populism, overlooking or underestimating the trickster’s impact—whether as a catalyst for disruption and change or as a source of deception and destruction—would be to our detriment.