Fascist politics is running rampant in America, and spreading around the world. A Yale philosopher identifies its ten pillars and charts its horrifying rise and deep history.
"No single book is as relevant to the present moment."-Claudia Rankine, author of Citizen
"One of the defining books of the decade."-Elizabeth Hinton, author of From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime
NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS' CHOICE . With a new preface . Fascist politics are running rampant in America today-and spreading around the world. A Yale philosopher identifies the ten pillars of fascist politics, and charts their horrifying rise and deep history.
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.
"With unsettling insight and disturbing clarity, How Fascism Works is an essential guidebook to our current national dilemma of democracy vs. authoritarianism."-William Jelani Cobb, author of The Substance of Hope
Fascist politics is running rampant in America, and spreading around the world. A Yale philosopher identifies its ten pillars and charts its horrifying rise and deep history.
"No single book is as relevant to the present moment."-Claudia Rankine, author of Citizen
"One of the defining books of the decade."-Elizabeth Hinton, author of From the War on Poverty to the War on Crime
NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW EDITORS' CHOICE . With a new preface . Fascist politics are running rampant in America today-and spreading around the world. A Yale philosopher identifies the ten pillars of fascist politics, and charts their horrifying rise and deep history.
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.
"With unsettling insight and disturbing clarity, How Fascism Works is an essential guidebook to our current national dilemma of democracy vs. authoritarianism."-William Jelani Cobb, author of The Substance of Hope
Jason Stanleyis the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of five books, includingHow Propaganda Works, winner of the Prose Award in Philosophy from the Association of American Publishers, andHow Fascism Works- The Politics of Us and Them,about whichCitizenauthor Claudia Rankine states- "No single book is as relevant to our present moment." Stanley serves on the board of the Prison Policy Initiative and writes frequently about propaganda, free speech, mass incarceration, democracy, and authoritarianism forThe New York Times,The Washington Post,Boston Review,The Chronicle of Higher Education, andThe Guardian.
“A vital read . . . The book provides a fascinating breakdown
of the fascist ideology, nimbly interweaving examples from Germany,
Italy and Hungary, from Rwanda and Myanmar to Serbia and, yes, the
US. As he proceeds through his framework of the broadest features
of his subject, Stanley includes smaller observations that may
for some readers land bracingly close to home.”—The Guardian
“By placing Trump in transnational and transhistorical perspective,
Stanley sees patterns that others miss. . . . Stanley’s comparative
perspective is particularly effective in illustrating how fascists
use fears of sexual violence. . . . By calling Trump a ‘fascist’—a
word that strikes many Americans as alien and extreme—Stanley is
trying to spark public alarm. He doesn’t want Americans to respond
to Trump’s racist, authoritarian offensives by moving their moral
goal posts. The greater danger, he suggests, isn’t hyperbole, it’s
normalization.”—The New York Times Book Review (Editors’
Choice)
“Jason Stanley’s staggering analysis has only grown in importance
since the release of How Fascism Works in 2018. It is one of the
defining books of the decade.”—Elizabeth Hinton, author of From the
War on Poverty to the War on Crime
“Jason Stanley reveals how the liberties of the people wither when
voters embrace politicians who promote the divisive politics of us
versus them while denigrating cooperation, compromise, and respect
for others. How Fascism Works builds on philosopher Stanley’s
insightful How Propaganda Works to explain in concise and easily
understood terms how people get tricked into reversing the
expanding rights that made America great.”—David Cay Johnston,
Pulitzer Prize–winning author of It’s Even Worse Than You Think and
The Making of Donald Trump
“An endless question about history—does it repeat itself? The
Allies triumphed over fascism nearly seventy-five years ago. But is
it on the rise again? The national populism of Trump and Bannon;
Brexit; Orban and the rise of the Hungarian right; the Italian
five-star movement; Erdoğan—Jason Stanley has in this extraordinary
book tried to answer these questions. For those in denial or in
doubt, Stanley’s book provides overwhelming evidence that fascism
is alive, well, and on the rise. It’s a clarion call to wake up,
pay attention, and do something. No one has any doubt that fascism
works; the question remains: How do we stop it? Stanley tells us
that fascism is not a plan on how to govern but a plan on how to
seize control. This is an important and essential book.”—Errol
Morris, filmmaker and author of The Ashtray
“There are moments in which the fate of humanity itself hangs in
the balance, and such times always bring with them the resurrection
of ugly myths. And yet, as Jason Stanley, one of this nation’s most
important philosophers, makes clear, when such myths are
deconstructed and their history is laid bare, we remember the
extraordinary ties that in fact bind us together. And in the fire
of that powerful recollection, modern-day fascism—the current
myth-dependent moment of intolerance, xenophobia, and fearmongering
in which we find ourselves—can be rendered to ash.”—Heather Ann
Thompson, Pulitzer Prize–winning author of Blood in the Water
“Jason Stanley’s book comes at a most propitious time, when we must
come to grips with the political consequences that may follow the
rise of xenophobic populism. History teaches what those
consequences are, and in his book Stanley, with great analytical
and conceptual clarity, not only tells the story but more crucially
provides a critical framework through which to see the insidious
mechanisms at play that are threatening today’s democracies around
the globe. How Fascism Works is a must-read for all of us who take
seriously our responsibility as citizens.”—Jan T. Gross, author of
Neighbors
“A sharply argued and timely guide . . . Stanley’s highlighting of
the politics of sexual anxiety is particularly welcome and
relevant.”—Ruth Ben-Ghiat, author of Italian Fascism’s Empire
Cinema
“With unsettling insight and disturbing clarity, How Fascism Works
is an essential guidebook to our current national dilemma of
democracy vs. authoritarianism. The fingerprints of the fascist
past are visible in the present, and this volume bravely shines a
light upon them.”—William Jelani Cobb, author of The Substance of
Hope
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