Description
Has fascism arrived in America? In this pioneering book, Gavriel D. Rosenfeld and Janet Ward have gathered experts to survey the history of fascism in the United States. Although the US established a staunch anti-fascist reputation by defeating the Axis powers in World War II, the unsettling truth is that fascist ideas have long been present within American society. Since the election of Donald Trump as President in 2016, scholars have debated whether Trumpism should be seen as an outgrowth of American conservatism or of a darker – and potentially fascist – tradition. Fascism in America contributes to this debate by examining the activities of interwar right-wing groups like the Silver Shirts, the KKK, and the America First movement, as well as the post-war rise of Black antifascism and white vigilantism, the representation of American Nazis in popular culture, and policy options for combating right-wing extremism.
Table of Contents
Introduction: Fascism in America: Past and Present Gavriel D. Rosenfeld and Janet Ward; Part I. Strategic Thinking about Fascism: 1. Liberalism in crisis: what is fascism and where does it come from? Geoff Eley; 2. Anarchy and the state of nature in Donald Trump's America and Adolf Hitler's Germany Thomas Weber; 3. 'America first': nationalism, nativism and the fascism question, 1880–2020 Matthew Specter and Varsha Venkatasubramanian; Part II. Homegrown Nazis: 4. The American Fascists Linda Gordon; 5. Hitler at the ballot box? Support for fascism among American elected officials Bradley W. Hart; 6. Fascism and antisemitism in 1930s America: the genocidal vision of the silver shirts Richard Steigmann-Gall; Part III. White Anti-Democratic Violence and Black Antifascist Activism: 7. Vigilantism and fascism in the Pacific Northwest: an insurgent tradition renewed Alexander Reid Ross; 8. 'A heritage of fascists without labels': black antifascism and the productive politics of analogy Anna F. Duensing; 9. 'No Trump, no KKK, no fascist USA': African American activists fight fascism, 1960–1980s Ousmane K. Power-Greene; Part IV. Countering Fascism in Culture and Policy: 10. Fascism in American culture: how alternate a history? Gavriel D. Rosenfeld; 11. Concentration camps in Trump's America? Marla Stone; 12. Formulating policy responses to the right-wing threat Cynthia Miller-Idriss; Epilogue Ruth Ben-Ghiat.
