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The Characteristics of Pre-Fascism
The following article is included in my new book, Donald Trump: Deadbeat Tyrant, published 13th January, 2021.
Some critics of Donald Trump have long held that he is a fascist. It is easy to see why. He ran on an openly racist platform. He expresses admiration for strongman-type dictators. He denigrates all critical media as “fake news”. He attacks the judiciary. He seeks to erode the rights of minorities. He appears to hold contempt for democracy. His administration operates camps where immigrants, including children separated from their parents, are detained for long periods.
In recent days, Trump has burnished his fascist credentials. He has threatened (and carried out) violence upon peaceful protestors and has raised the prospect of turning the most powerful military in the world upon its own people. He has declared Antifa, a loose collection of groups and individuals who seek to oppose fascism, to be a terrorist organisation. Even The Washington Post, not exactly a bastion of Antifa, is now questioning whether Donald Trump is indeed a fascist.
With a potential fascist in the White House, are we at a point in history where fascism now threatens to overwhelm democracy in the United States? To answer that question, this article will look at the conditions that led to the rise of this ideology in Italy and Germany and see what…
