Fascism, it's a word that's thrown around a lot these days.
Everything seems to be fascist: Suggesting that we not use certain slurs-
Fascist Being Banned from twitter?- Fascist
Being denied a paid speaking gig- Fascist With that word being thrown around so much,
it can be hard to understand exactly Fascism is, but luckily, i'm here to clarify.
Fascism is a form of government generally headed by a dictator... or an Oligarchy.
Fascist States utilize Authoritarianism, which demands strict obedience to a central power.
This limits the personal freedom of its citizens, often under the guise of submission being
for the common good.
This notion often translates into Nationalism- which is simply a pride in one's country.
Nationalism sounds almost harmless-and even understandable, but under a Fascist government,
the actions of the state are always correct.
So whether its building a school or slaughtering immigrants, decisions made by the state are
always the right decisions.
Nationalism tends to breed Xenophobia, which is the fear of foreigners.
Fascist States see their Nation as virtuous and and foreigners as the largest threat to
that virtue.
People who support them or do business with them are seen as enemies of the state.
In these situations, Xenophobia is often closely tied to racism and prejudice.
Fascism, as we know it, has its roots in Europe- specifically Italy.
Ever hear someone refer to person as "Machiavellian"?
Well Niccolo Machiavelli was an Italian political philosopher who inspired Benito Mussolini,
the leader of The Italian Fascist party who would later become an Italian dictator in
1925.
Machiavelli was a Renaissance era political philosopher and strategist, who wrote a book
called The Prince.
The Prince was was written to advise monarchs on how to pursue political power and favor-
not through kissing babies, but often through brutality and deception.
He's said to have coined the old adage that it is better "to be feared than to be loved"'.
Machiavelli asserted that there was a distinct difference between the personal and public
morality of leaders; and that being a "Prince" often meant making harsh decisions that were
contrary to what many people would see as morally just.
He often suggested the use ruthless violence as a means of eradicating competition, intimidating
citizens and curving dissent.
He believed that all the above must be done in the interest of the state--or at least
that's how it should seem to its citizens.
Machiavelli had some... interesting ideas and while some of them seem extreme and even
frightening, his writings have provided guidance to leaders...
and some business men to this day.
His advice often seems extreme, but isn't necessarily bad advice and people have interpreted
his works in various ways.
When a young Benito Mussolini read the Prince, he was convinced that he qualified for that
role- and so he used much of Machiavelli's advice when pursuing control.
Fascism is a tricky thing to nail down, especially when it's conflated with so many things.
Fortunately, many fascists have actually written outlines for their fascism and Mussolini just
happened to be one of them!
Mussolini wrote extensively and gave several speeches defining fascism.
He published a Fascist Decalogue in 1934 1.
Know that the Fascist and in particular the soldier, must not believe in perpetual peace.
2.
Days of imprisonment are always deserved.
3.
The nation serves even as a sentinel over a can of petrol.
4.
A companion must be a brother, first, because he lives with you, and secondly because he
thinks like you.
5.
The rifle and the cartridge belt, and the rest, are confided to you not to rust in leisure,
but to be preserved in war.
6.
Do not ever say "The Government will pay . . . " because it is you who pay; and the Government is that
which you willed to have, and for which you put on a uniform.
7.
Discipline is the soul of armies; without it there are no soldiers, only confusion and
defeat.
8.
Mussolini is always right.
9.
For a volunteer there are no extenuating circumstances when he is disobedient.
10.
One thing must be dear to you above all: the life of the Duce.
If you're hearing these points for the first time, they may feel very extreme and even
surreal.
You might even wonder what sort of atmosphere was created that allowed something like this
to become empowered.
Well, Italy after the first World War was chaotic.
The unemployment rate was extremely high and people were starving.
Italy had suffered steep casualties in the war and many Italian citizens ultimately felt
that they got the short stick in the aftermath.
As Russia's successful Communist revolution grew, there was hysteria around the idea that
communism would spread internationally.
Many thought the only way would be through extreme measures.
Mussolini emerged from the war as a wounded veteran with a drastically different world
view.
Once a strong Socialist, but now a staunch anti-socialist- he began advocating for an
Italian dictatorship.
He'd move into that role when he rallied forty thousand Fascists in Naples in the March on
Rome in the October of 1922.
The march was in response to the Italian government siding with Socialist interests.
He effectively became a dictator and would be one for the next 21 years.
By 1926, Mussolini started censoring the media, banning books and de-legitimizing certain
the arts.
By 1929, despite his personal distaste for the church, he began showing support for Catholicism,
even giving the Vatican City to the Church.
On the flip side, by 1938 he introduced anti semitic laws that banned Jewish people from
much of public life.
Especially when it came to people of Jewish descent intermingling with "pure" Italians.
That precedent of racial purity was also translated to the Italian Colonization of Ethiopia.
Aaron Gilette recorded Mussolini saying the following in his book "Racial Theories in
Fascist Italy"
“The singular, enormous problem is the destiny of the White race.
Europe is truly towards the end of its destiny as the leader of civilization.”
He expanded.
“the White race is sickly,” “morally and physically in ruin,”
and he further warned
This all being said, it's important to note that fascism isn't an officially racist perspective-
though racism is often a side effect of fascism.
Frankly, nailing down what fascism is exactly, is quite hard and i'm just brushing the surface
of it and the extensive history of Mussolini.
There have been many fascist leaders since and we generally know what fascism looks like
and how it impacts the nations that it's materialized in.
But something to keep in mind is that Fascism can seem very seductive under certain circumstances
to certain people.
Mussolini managed to get the most support from disenchanted veterans and a middle class
that feared for the future of their success.
Fascism requires a weakened and fearful base inspired by lies and fear of the unknown.
Fear of an uncertain future has stoked the fires of extremism time and time again, but
in the end what we do know about fascism is that it always collapses.