Countering fascism: Molly Scott Cato’s Thought for the Week

‘The actions we needed to take were often simple and even enjoyable.’

What we are seeing on our streets is fascism. We need to name it and understand it, because only then can we defeat it. Why do I say this with such confidence? Because I have been aware of the methods and messages of this most odious ideology since 2017. Then, in the wake of the horrible referendum campaign, my EU parliamentary staff and I sat down to work out what was making us fearful and what we could do about it.

Our question to ourselves was: what are the indicators of fascism we should look out for? We found help in the Italian author Umberto Eco, whose article ‘Eternal Fascism: Fourteen Ways of Looking at a Blackshirt’ was published in 1995. When we looked at his list of traits and elements, we could see that all were visible in UK society in 2017. From a disdain for intellectuals (‘experts’ as the Brexiteers contemptuously described them), to widely-disseminated disinformation, to the promises to restore national glory, to threats to human rights, we could see that society was moving in a frightening direction.

In spite of this, we felt better for knowing what we were up against. And the more encouraging news was that the actions we needed to take to counter the threat were often simple and even enjoyable. Joining a trade union or a community group, cherishing diversity, championing peacemaking, refusing to conform – all these were things we were already doing but would now do with greater commitment. We managed to cram what we learned onto two sides of a beermat: ‘How to spot fascism’ on one side and ‘How to resist’ on the other. Why a beermat? We imagined this might be an efficient way of getting the message to the right people. And there was a subversive joy in slipping them onto pub tables. We were accused at the time of making light of the threat from the fascists; nothing could be further from the truth. The currency of fascism is fear, and the best weapon to counteract that is solidarity. But the next best is mockery. People espousing fascism hate being laughed at. It’s more threatening to them than a prison sentence, which some wear as a badge of honour.

I took this new-found knowledge out on the road and invited politicians and specialist academics to join me. They were amazing. We realised we were up against something serious and we left tribalism at the door. I learned from these meetings that the engine of fascism is racism. Other myths and methods matter, but the identification and intimidation of ‘the other’ matters more. This is where resistance must begin.

We have seen some wonderful community solidarity in recent days, and I think politicians know instinctively that this is their most important duty when fascism menaces our society. But individuals matter too. We can reach out to those nearest to us who have been left fearful and tell them we are with them. Join a trade union. Join any community group and make it strong – it could be a campaigning group or a dance club or a choir. Strong, connected communities are highly resistant to the fear and division that fascism feeds on. Do not give in to fear, but let it motivate you to action. We can and must unite to defeat fascism.

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Comments

Thank you Molly, this article is very timely and helps counter the sense of isolation one can feel when these insidious threats seem to surround us. We need to all continue doing little things as well as big ones. Are the beer mats available?

By Christine HC on 2024 08 19

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