Summary: As the child of refugees of World War II Europe and a renowned
philosopher and scholar of propaganda, Jason Stanley has a deep
understanding of how democratic societies can be vulnerable to fascism:
Nations don’t have to be fascist to suffer from fascist politics. In
fact, fascism’s roots have been present in the United States for more
than a century. Alarmed by the pervasive rise of fascist tactics both at
home and around the globe, Stanley focuses here on the structures that
unite them, laying out and analyzing the ten pillars of fascist
politics—the language and beliefs that separate people into an “us” and a
“them.” He knits together reflections on history, philosophy,
sociology, and critical race theory with stories from contemporary
Hungary, Poland, India, Myanmar, and the United States, among other
nations. He makes clear the immense danger of underestimating the
cumulative power of these tactics, which include exploiting a mythic
version of a nation’s past; propaganda that twists the language of
democratic ideals against themselves; anti-intellectualism directed
against universities and experts; law and order politics predicated on
the assumption that members of minority groups are criminals; and fierce
attacks on labor groups and welfare. These mechanisms all build on one
another, creating and reinforcing divisions and shaping a society
vulnerable to the appeals of authoritarian leadership.
By
uncovering disturbing patterns that are as prevalent today as ever,
Stanley reveals that the stuff of politics—charged by rhetoric and
myth—can quickly become policy and reality. Only by recognizing fascists
politics, he argues, may we resist its most harmful effects and return
to democratic ideals.
My Thoughts:
I found this book to be completely fascinating. It's not very long, and it's a pretty easy read, very accessible and not too philosophical. Simple enough for the average person to comprehend. I just checked out his earlier book "How Propogranda Works" and it is much thicker and denser, so I'm not sure I'll end up slogging through that one.
I thought this book was really important to read, especially in today's world where most of us can agree that there is a large amount of division going on in our country. The author pointed out how incredibly important it is that we not allow ourselves to get sucked into the "us vs them" rhetoric. I have been worried about that myself, as I have seen a lot of stuff on Facebook and even directly stated by political commentators about how "all" members of certain groups are "evil" "criminals" "rapists" "drug dealers" etc. It's really important to be aware of these tactics so we can prevent truly evil things from happening here in the United States. We have to leave our hearts open with compassion to those who are different from us. There are bad people EVERYWHERE, it's true, but we cannot lump all the bad people into one racial, ethnic, or political group and just be able to make blanket statements that condemn them all.
