authoritarianism

Thomas Zimmer on Danger and Hope for Democracy

The historian and podcaster says hope for a multicultural democracy lies with the young: "Preserving the status quo will not be good enough, and the younger generation understands this better than any other."

The Police Car is PR for Power without Accountability

by Jeffrey Lamson

As the central feature of police technology and the main way that departments present themselves to the public, police cars have long been key symbols in police efforts to claim greater legitimacy, resources and power. 

The Anti-Populist Dilemma

by Jan-Werner Müller

From Turkey to Hungary to Israel, forming a lasting coalition of parties against a right-wing authoritarian populist has proven easier said than done. 

Suppression of Public Commemoration is an Early Warning of Authoritarian Abuse of History

by Ruben Zeeman

While several laws pertaining to historical memory have been passed under nationalist regimes in Europe, other authoritarian societies actively use other laws as an excuse to suppress inconvenient historic commemorations, reflecting a broad and growing pattern of subordinating history to power.

Mussolini in Myth and Memory

by Paul Corner

Italians' recollection of Mussolini and the Fascist regime embody the replacement of historical memory with national mythology—a mythology that dismisses both the violence of the dictatorship and Italians' collective responsibility for it and enables the resurgence of the far right today.

Why It's No Contradiction for Trump to Demand Illegal Actions to Defend "Law and Order"

by Lawrence B. Glickman

Since Reconstruction's overthrow, calls for "law and order" have imagined the former as a tool for enforcing a particular vision of the latter, usually in the form of white-dominated racial hierarchy.

What, Exactly, Is Fascism?

by Ruth Ben-Ghiat

Are you confused about the meaning of Fascism? If so, you're not alone. Benito Mussolini, the creator of Fascism, famously did not define it until 1932.

Trump is Back In, Officially

by Tom Nichols

"Donald Trump wants to return to the White House. His candidacy should be the final test of whether the United States has truly overcome the lure of authoritarianism."

The Fascism Debate is Over; Fascism Won

by Jonathan M. Katz

Academic hair-splitting about the applicability of the F-word to the MAGA phenomenon has not served the cause of democracy well. 

Beschloss, Ben-Ghiat on the Stakes of the Midterms

NBC Presidential Historian Michael Beschloss and NYU History Professor Ruth Ben-Ghiat discuss the concept of fascism and the danger facing the U.S with American Voices host Alicia Menendez. 

Are Americans Ready for their Neighbors to Turn Them In?

From abortion to classroom teaching, state laws are increasingly incentivizing people to report other members of the community for violating new restrictions. Experts say this has worked in the past to erode trust and enable further authoritarianism. 

The Authoritarian Personality and the Rising Far Right

by Sam Ben-Meir

This moment of peril for American democracy calls for a return to the diagnosis presented in "The Authoritarian Personality," 1950s effort to develop a social-psychological profile of the people likely to embrace fascism. 

It's Also Frightening When Trump Tells the Truth

by Tom Nichols

Showing his belief that the democratic process is only legitimate when he wins, Trump demonstrates the nihilism at the heart of MAGA, which Joe Biden correctly called out last week in his speech. 

Can We Do Better than Liberal Democracy?

by Adam Gopnik

Critic Adam Gopnik examines two recent books on alternatives to representative democracy that respond to the recent use of institutions by power-seeking authoritarians. 

Thomas Zimmer: Slide Toward Authoritarianism on Right is Accelerating

Historian Thomas Zimmer tells Joshua Holland that there is a consensus among experts that American democracy is teetering on the brink of collapse -- but there is a reason for hope.

Trump's Reelection Threatens a Politicized Civil Service

by Heather Cox Richardson

Since 1883, the federal civil service has been protected from the old spoils system by rules for merit-based hiring and promotion. Trump has threatened to revert to a system of rewards for loyalists and punishment for enemies, without regard for performing the public's business. 

The Dictatorship of the Supreme Court

by Christine Adams

Six judges, who are impervious to public opinion and majority rule are exercising arbitrary control over American society, jeopardizing the very legitimacy of the government. 

Where Will America Be by 2030?

by Ed Simon

The right's agenda is for a white, Christian, patriarchal nationalism that simply can't be achieved by majority rule. That's what the Supreme Court and 400,000,000 privately owned guns are for.

Trump's Incitement Against Shaye Moss over the Georgia Vote Count Carries on a Dark American Tradition

by Tera W. Hunter

Whether for casting ballots or counting them, Trump was quick to blame Black Americans for his defeat, carrying on an ignominious tradition of casting Black political participation as illegitimate and dangerous. 

Seeing Through America's "Crisis Industrial Complex"

by Nikhil Pal Singh

While the elite media class indulges in lurid fantasies of an armed breakup of the nation, those who live precarious or impoverished lives find themselves already enmeshed in a civil war; the real red/blue conflict is about who will control the infrastructure of repression built up over the last half century.