How not to be a fascist

What’s the fastest way to shut someone up?

Call them a fascist. Works every time. The universe conversation ender.

This pejorative epithet has been used against a range of people, political movements, governments, and institutions for over one hundred years now. And it’s fair game for all. People on both the left and the right have accused their opponents of being fascists at once point or another.

Orwell himself famously wrote, fascism is a smear word more often used to brand one’s foes than it is a descriptor used to shed light on them.

No wonder fascist regimes have led to genocides, massacres, forced sterilizations, mass killings, and forced deportations.

What’s interesting is, nobody ever refers to themselves a fascist. In fact, since the end of the second world war, few groups have openly described themselves as such. It’s more of term you give to your enemies.

Fascism is clearly a label nobody wants attached to their name. And so, wouldn’t it make sense to learn what the specific tenets of this ideology are, and then behave in the opposite way? We could make the world a better place by learning about this thing called fascism, and then actively opposing and counteracting its harmful elements.

By rejecting these core principles of the philosophy, we contribute to the creation of a more compassionate society.

Many scholars, philosophers and cultural theorists have described the core properties of fascism over the years, and below I share the highlights, along with directives of how to act instead.

Guthrie famously said that his guitar killed fascists, so let’s keep that melody alive. Here we go.

First, fascists believe that all truth has already been revealed by tradition.

Which means that no new learning can occur. This represents a lack of critical thinking and intellectual curiosity.

How to behave instead? Reject the cult of tradition. Remain open to new learning and interpretations beyond what convention dictates. Consider the possibility that the popular meme, tradition is peer pressure from dead people, holds at least some water.

It’s not about progress uber alles, but if our traditions are obsolete, unnecessary, harmful or impractical, it’s probably best to move on from them. We must be receptive to revising our beliefs when confronted with compelling evidence. And we must accept that change is a natural part of life that allows us to adapt and grow intellectually.

Two, fascists equate disagreement with treason.

They devalue our intellectual discourse and critical reasoning, viewing them as barriers to action. The critical spirit should be encouraged, because it makes distinctions that improve knowledge.

What’s the alternative? We learn to view constructive dissent as an essential tool for growth and understanding. We learn how to disagree constructively, instead of flying into a rage or quietly seething.

None of this bickering and childish, I’m right, you’re evil bullshit. Just because someone disagrees with you does mean they have just attacked your value system. It’s not personal, it’s not a rejection, it’s simply the presentation of a different opinion.

Third for fascist behaviors is, they try to obsess over xenophobic plots, enemy threats and conspiracy theories.

They fear disloyalty and sabotage from marginalized groups living within society. There is no pursuit of common ground and peaceful resolution.

What’s a better approach? Get out of the echo chamber to gain a balanced and comprehensive understanding of events and issues. Try reading actual books for a change, not clickbait articles and social media posts, but dutifully researched, credibly edited and professionally published works of art.

I know that scanning the world for danger and suspecting the worst of people once provided humans a survival edge, but seeing imaginary patterns and clues in random life events and creating associations where none exist is unhelpful delusion.

Four, they view life as permanent warfare.

There must always be an enemy to fight, and they have contempt for the weak. Fascists believe certain members of society are superior to outsiders by virtue of belonging to some in group.

Is there a different path? Yes, it’s called emotional regulation. It’s called introducing a little mindfulness to prevent your brain from excessive rumination about past conflicts or anxieties about future ones.

Look, everyone has trauma in their lives eventually. But the difference between the war mongers and the peace makers is, the latter know how to process their feelings, gain insights into recurring patterns and find healthier perspectives. Fascism shouldn’t be fought with guns and, it should be fraught with journals.

Number five, fascists educate everyone to become a hero.

This leads people to embrace a cult of death that glorifies violence and destruction. They join a cult of personality that promotes individual identity above the values and principles they represent.

Sound ineffective? You’re right. Here’s what to do instead. Infect yourself with a case of the humbles. Trust that the day doesn’t need to be saved, only savored. Pick better heroes. Stop worshiping macho idiots who take their personal honor so seriously that they will fight for things that don’t matter.

Don’t be so damn impatient to die. The performative heroism of defying everyone and everything all the time, just to maintain identity consistency, is a stupid risk.

And finally, fascists strive for controlled language and restricted vocabulary.

This is designed to limit people’s ability to think critically or articulate subversive concepts. Orwell named it newspeak, characterized by its reduction of vocabulary, elimination of ambiguous words, and changing language to suppress dissent or independent thinking.

To avoid this, we create a simple checklist for ourselves with questions like this.

*What’s the source of the information?
*Are the definitions clear and consistent?
*Is the language emotionally charged?
*Are there oversimplifications or absolutes?
*Is there an attempt to control the narrative?
*Is there a focus on personal attacks, not substantive arguments?
*Are euphemisms used to downplay or mask unpleasant truths?

This helps us consume information objectively, which keeps us safe.

Ultimately, what we’ve done here is reverse engineered the fascist behaviors that have proven time and time again to be toxic for our society, and then actively opposed and counteracted their harmful elements.

That seems more productive than sitting back and calling anyone we don’t like or agree with a fascist.

In fact, calling someone a fascist to silence their views and avoid debate, might mean that we are in fact, being a fascist ourselves.

Maybe we are the future that’s refusing to be born.

In the end, it doesn’t matter what side of the aisle we’re on. Each of us must be willing to confront the potential elements of fascism within our own mindsets and behaviors.

Doing so is the best way to work towards and more curious and compassionate society.

How are you reducing fascism in the world?