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American Fascism, Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow? [1]
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Date: 2025-03-30
The fascist leadership and the fascist follower. They are certainly closely related to each other. Let’s take a look at both, both in the past as well as today.
The Snake Head of Fascism
FDR quote on fascism.
Once a Party that supported Abraham Lincoln, the Republicans of today pandered for years to one or more of the classic biases such as racism, misogyny, homophobia, anti-immigrant feelings along with and a few other “biases of the month.” Always framed in anti government rhetoric and slander.
This long before they decided to actually overthrow and destroy the federal government and became full fledged fascists.
Yesterday’s Selective Fascism
The harshest aspects of their behavior can be fairly described as “selective fascism.” Which is my own term, you won’t find it in any books. Meaning a blanket denial of civil and human rights to only specific groups such as enslaved people of color and the genocidal treatment of Native Americans. A somewhat softer form of civil rights denial was practiced against women until 1919.
Selective Fascism refers to a society which grants some level of civil rights to only some of its citizens.
Slavery was not outlawed until 1963.
Native American tribes had zero civil rights and were decimated in a long bitter struggle almost three centuries long to confiscate their lands and eradicate their culture. Black Americans were brought to America on slave ships and were totally without any civil rights as well as Native Americans until the end of the Civil War.
Republican Party Today, in Name Only
Understanding what changed today and just recently with Trump’s 2024 “election” are the efforts to universalize civil, union and democratic rights denial for everyone, including those pro-fascist mostly white sympathizers that actually supported Trump and the Republican Party, now more accurately defined as the MAGA Party.
In Das Capital, fascism is defined as the open terrorist dictatorship of the most reactionary, chauvinistic, and imperialistic elements of finance capital.
Ancient “Fascist” Dictatorships
Women demonstrate for the right to vote.
Note that the above definition can be applied in some respects to other historical states that have existed in the days before capitalism developed. History is filled with examples of dictatorial states with god-like patriarchal and authoritarian leaders that are ruthless oppressors of all individual rights and imperialistic in their propensity for invading other states to pillage wealth and take slaves.
Yes, they didn’t have capitalism as their economic system. And it is conceded that there are indeed aspects of exploitation unique to capitalism, but the ancient rulers and upper classes were similar in many other fundamental ways to the fascist regimes of today.
Modern Day “Selective Fascist Behavior”
“Selective fascism” can even be applied more loosely to the 1950’s McCarthy era and especially undeclared wars like what happened in Vietnam. Where an entire country was militarily invaded and underwent the eventual slaughter of over two million Vietnamese. Denying them national, civil and human rights. This and a number of other wars and interventions have been both unjust and also bipartisan.
An Overly Limited Definition of Fascism Ironically, modern capitalist leadership has accepted the Marxist definition of fascism as relating to modern capitalist economies. Thus making fascism an economic, not also a social problem. It’s also used by the left. The definition is limited in that it ignores the absorption of fascist ideologies by many of the masses which becomes a material factor in giving birth to it. A system that’s no way in the interests of the masses themselves. A point not fully grasped by the German Communist and Social Democratic Parties, which were shocked so many of the masses followed the Nazis. Fascist ideologies themselves have nothing to do with capitalism and can exist without them, Joe Stalin, Vlad the Impaler and Pol Pot being good examples. The predicates biases and ideologies leading to the capitalist version described as fascism existed long before modern forms of capitalism.
How Fascism Compares to Ancient Dictatorships
Vlad the Impaler had millions slaughtered by impaling them on poles.
Ancient dictatorships compare in many ways to modern capitalist systems that turn fascist in these important ways:
The leader and his allies suspend or forbid, often under pain of death, of any exercise of civil rights by the lower classes not permitted by their leader, emperor, or king. They are often imperialistic in acquiring or taking by force, murder or mass murder the property and goods of other states and territories. Many in Europe got the blessings of the Catholic Church, sometimes under threat of murder, sometimes more willingly. The leader requires support and being guarded by a class of wealthy nobles and warriors from their ranks and may recruit foot soldiers from the lower classes to fight in wars. They ruthlessly repress all classes or individuals that do not display obedience and loyalty to the leader. They do not permit any organizations among the lower classes that challenge the leader’s authority or privileges. Leaders employ various strategies to divide and rule the lower classes by appealing to biases and ignorance. Leadership is usually a single authoritarian patriarchal despot. Thanks to modern technology, some modern despots, like Adolf Hitler, have even exceeded the number of murders attributed to leaders like Vlad the Impaler.
Our tyrannical unelected president.
Modern Fascism and the Economy
It’s an extreme authoritarian goal to control all the nuts and bolts of an economic and trade system, typically a capitalist one in modern times, leading to super rich oligarchs in the monopoly stages of capitalism acting as the main protagonists.
The capitalist classes have always opposed independent political power being exercised by its workers, such as through unions. There was a decades long often violent struggle to establish unions, a struggle which brought about unprecedented New Deal reforms, which today are trying to be taken away.
Motivations
Their motives are two fold. Many in the more draconian leadership roles believe the system can be run more efficiently and more profitably when the demands of the classes below them can be suppressed with an iron fist and administered however they please. While a democratic government has enormous power, for both good as well as evil, it is still considered an impediment by the wealthy oligarchs and basically their enemy. One that must be dominated, smashed and controlled. These wannabe fascists constantly feel threatened by not having such control.
American Fascism in 100 Words In summary, the leanings towards dictatorship and fascism by some in upper classes circles, along with rejection of any type of representative system, often stems from selfish material interests, capitalist crises and/or fears of the lower and middle classes assuming greater economic influence and powers over the system. Or even because they just feel they have the power and capital to do it. While many in the masses may already lean fascist in a country that still exercises a rational form of democracy, it takes significant ruling class leadership, manipulation and investment to turn supporters into full pledged fascists and a movement.
The Big Four
White Supremacist Nazi march in Charlottesville during Trump’s first administration pandered to by Trump as “some fine people.”
In America, the various biases that form the basis of fascism’s mass popularity, are the big four: racism, misogyny, homophobia and militarism. They have long been imprinted upon the masses and passed on from generation to generation. They await exploitation and eventual formation into a full fledged, well financed fascist MAGA movement.
The fascist mindset was particularly strong among white Americans (more in males than females), and is an already established element for the fascist leadership to exploit.
Conditions in America are historically conducive to successful appeals to the dark, fascist leaning side of the lower and middle class, especially whites of European decent. They include:
Pro-Russian policies at this time are a threat to national security.
Extreme political ignorance, including very low levels of class consciousness. The cultivation of, as already mentioned, and pandering to, the big four divisive biases. Including racism, white supremacist sympathies, patriarchal misogyny, homophobia and a reactionary nationalist obsession in the greatness and power of our military, along with other damaging biases. An exaggerated dependence and submissiveness by many of the masses to fascist authority figures and an identification with the powers they seek. The dominance of an overly materialism, capitalist and patriarchal culture maintained by the elite classes and absorbed by the masses and reproduced generation to generation. Not mentioned in “2”, there is a strong current of fear, disgust and scapegoating of the under classes of both the lower paid working class and the unemployed poor. Historical alienation and mistrust of the political class and a widely held belief they do not adequately represent the lower and middle classes. This can be found in both right and left leaning individuals. Last, but certainly not least, is attacking the federal government to sow mistrust, red baiting it by calling it communistic, disrespect, advocating even out right hatred, especially for the social and economic services and humanitarian efforts it provides. This is a major goal of the Republican, now MAGA noise machine that has turned to fascism.
The Meaning of the Culture Wars
MLK greats a massive crowd at the “I have a Dream” Civil Rights march on Washington in 1965.
The struggles of the 60s through 80s can be described as America’s selective fascist tendencies facing massive resistance and organizing against racial oppression and imperialist wars, and for civil and human rights. This long struggle greatly reduced our risks at the time of devolving into outright fascism.
One of the many highlights of that era, and there were many, was the threatened impeachment of President Nixon for a number of illegal activities which together came under the headline of the Watergate Affair.
Civil rights and human rights for blacks, women, gay people and others were greatly increased as a result, which was anathema to the ultra right.
Wars like the one in Vietnam can also be looked at as an expression of fascism because in effect they are often intended to deny people of another country the right to decide the nature of their own government. The invasion, eventually by upwards of 500,000 U.S soldiers effectively took the civil and human rights away from the Vietnamese people, leading to 2 million + of their deaths. And not one politician or high ranked military leader ever served a day in prison.
The Far Right Understood Their Basic Mistakes
But while the reactionaries did their homework and learned from their mistakes, the new left failed to sustain much of an organized presence. The ultra right today has made an enormous comeback and are trying to establish a full fledged fascist state by any means necessary. They did it mainly by mass media control and establishing a national radio network with hundreds of right wing talking heads lying 24/7, and out messaging their opposition. Which reflected a more astute, if diabolical, understanding of their employment of successful mass psychology.
The Future of American Fascism
One of many marches on Washington during the Vietnam War.
Massive Resistance and Public Pressure are Essential to Combat it. Any successful campaign against fascism requires them. They can take many forms such as legal lawsuits, large and targeted demonstrations, boycotts, picketing and peaceful civil disobedience.
We should also remember that our messaging will not be accurately reported by major media outlets. But we can build up our strength and courage by being among large numbers of people with similar views. It build movements.
I never felt discouraged during times of mass activism.
General Wantmoreland as we called him.
One time, I recall we were marching down 7th Avenue, I think in the 50s in New York, early 1970s. A large hotel, I think it may have been the Hilton, had a fancy restaurant with large windows covered by curtains facing 7th. As we marched by someone in military uniform pulled back the curtains. It was General Westmoreland himself looking out at us, stone faced, as we walked. We went crazy and broke into all the popular chants. If I only had a camera.
Demonstrate and be Heard!
We’ve been worn down a bit by Trump, we need to get out there and make him and Musk miserable. If you possibly can, get out there on April 5th.
As Smokey the Bear Says: Only you can prevent fascism!
Voting may express that will politically. But right now there is a distinct possibility of there never being another fair election. So get out their and be heard the only way we can right now.
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