In the modern political context, many associate racial or ethnic nationalism with the “right wing” as opposed to the cosmopolitanism, internationalism and universalism of the “left.” This, however, is very much mistaken, as racial and ethnic nationalism can only be considered “right wing” if in the context of being the “right wing” of the Left—much like how neoliberals and neoconservatives are thought of (by many) as being on the left wing of the right.
Why is this? Nationalism, in all its variations (maybe except some that are more “proto or pseudo-nationalist,” rather than “nationalist”) are products of the leftist French Revolution. (Why the Revolution was “leftist” shouldn’t need debating.) To be more particular, nationalism was the product of the Jacobins (“Republican Revolutionaries”) and not a product of the reformers (non-revolutionaries) who were constitutional monarchists who wanted a monarchy, restrained by a representative body much like the English style.
We all thought nationalism was rightist, just like the Germans, correct? Well, our assumptions and suppositions were wrong. The origin is in monarchism, which is not rightist at all, it was, in origin, from the Jacobins, not rightists, at all! They had a lot of ideas, that today, look to be detrimental to life, liberty and the pursuit of property.