What is Fascism?

Do we even understand what fascism is? I can consult a number of different online sources about what fascism is, but definitions tend to lean pretty heavily on phrases like “characterized by…” and “attributes of which are…” that tend to introduce non-specificity to our understanding of it.

How do we define fascism?

As far as definitions go, I lean on two sources — my political science 101 professor in undergrad and the work of one of the most respected comedians to walk the planet.

Let’s entertain the academic first. As a college freshman, I took an introductory course to political systems much like everybody else did at my alma mater. There, my professor explored all different types of political systems and their role in history, being exceptionally careful to keep the ideas behind those systems firewalled from the economic systems with which they were often intertwined.

Still, with any discussion of fascism, there was a good deal of rhetorical beating around the bush in that class. Eventually, the prof did give us a definition I like:

“Fascism is the idea that some people were born to lead.”

That definition, while accurate, seems too benign. It doesn’t adequately convey how it’s usually determined that someone is ‘born to lead.’

So, to complete the definition, I lean on George Carlin and a bit he did later in his life about how the middle class has been thrown overboard in the U.S.:

“It’s a big club. And you ain’t in it.”

Everybody is an “other”

Fascism is inherently exclusionary. Who is and who isn’t in that ruling class is decided by elevating someone else’s idea of who ought to rule above what Americans tend to think of as principles of fairness. Historically, who ought to rule in a fascist system tends to be decided primarily along racial, religious and ethnic lines, so we’re talking about determining whether someone is fit to govern based on the circumstances they’re born into.

So if you were raised with the understanding that people ought to be treated equally and with respect, regardless of the color of their skin, the religion they might follow, or their ethnicity, fascism is the opposite of that.

That’s not enough, though. A lot of Americans can understand, deep in their core, that flirting with fascism means building a big club full of people who were born to lead. Those in a position of privilege who can imagine themselves as part of the ruling class often do just that. This is where the “and you ain’t in it” part comes in.

Fascism is just another power grab

Fascism is really a veneer over a naked power grab. At the core of its ethos is the notion that a divided society is easier to control than a united one. That’s where most people get it wrong with fascism. It’s a post-facto ideology that starts with someone trying to grab power by defining himself as the ruling class, based on his own racial, religious and ethnic characteristics. Here’s the rub: Those characteristics can change. Even when fascists are shown to not adhere to the characteristics of the groups they have held up as ideals, their definitions of “ideal” become malleable.

For instance, we know that Donald Trump is not particularly religious, nor does he attend church. This does not prevent him from gassing protestors so that he can have a photo op posing in front of a church with a bible.

In appealing to fascism, Trump has indicated that he is willing to hold up the Christian right as ideal, even though he does not subscribe to its beliefs. And should he be cemented into a position of power, perhaps by unfairly retaining power after the 2020 election, his elevation of the Christian right will persist only so long as the Christian right is willing to help keep him in power. The second they do not support him, he will change his definition of ideal. Because the definition of “ideal” is really “whoever will show fealty and keep him in power.”

In this way, fascism doesn’t even believe its own bullshit. That’s the “and you ain’t in it” part that many don’t understand.

“It’s a big club full of people who are born to lead. And you ain’t in it.”