Sue Coe, Fight Fascism, 2024. Courtesy the artist..

The word fascism derives from the Italian fascio, the name for the bundle of sticks carried by ancient Roman officials to beat into submission anybody who challenged their authority. A country gripped by fascism beats down its population until it acquiesces to dictatorial authority. Its ruler governs like a king, subject to few if any laws. (Not a king like the current King Charles of England; more like Atilla the Hun.) Citizens in fascist counties are encouraged to imagine a distant past when the country was great, while believing that the current, anti-democratic system will endure forever. In a fascist nation, the life of an individual is unimportant compared to the mass. The “mass” however, isn’t the community or the collective – it’s a population disciplined by fear and nationalist myth. Equally important for fascism is protecting “racial purity.” It doesn’t matter that there is no such thing as racial purity; fascist rulers lie with abandon. Violence is freely used to prevent resistance and ensure compliance; political dissidents and racial, ethnic, or gender outliers may be sent to prisons or concentration camps or even killed.

Below is an abbreviated list of the distinguishing features of fascism. But remember that every fascist regime is a little different; if it comes to prevail in the U.S., it will have its own, American characteristics. For one thing, people will wave the U.S. flag, not the Nazi swastika. In general however, fascist........

© CounterPunch