Thank you so much for this important newsletter. I do intend to share it out as widely as possible. You aleady know where I stand on this, as, yes, the mother, not of a teenager, but of a 20-something non-binary adult, and mother-in-law to their amazing partner. My kid has just begun Physician Assistant school, with the hope of specializing in trans Healthcare. Their partner is teaching financial skills to Special Ed seniors at a virtual HS. I'm incredibly proud of them, and I worry for their safety and physical and mental health every day.
Rob, thank you, as always, for your focus on this topic. Blessings to you and your family.
Excellent newsletter tonight Robert. The call it action is important. When we hear DeSantis claim he will lead a "war on woke" and "consign it to the trash heap of history" as he did this past week, we can know that Civil War II, which has been going on for awhile, has gotten a lot less "cold" as their rhetoric heats up. The threat of MAGA to the United States is existential. As James Comey pointed out this morning in an interview with Jen Psaki on MSNBC, the Founders never contemplated a "rogue president" in office. If Trump returns to the White House in 2024, they will start the deconstruction of the United States on Day 1, and there is little the system can do to a leader who refuses to recognize any of the system's limitations. The next 18 months are going to determine if the United States remain a constitutional democratic republic or falls as other republics have to those who abandon the republic in favor of taking power.
I have loved children since I was four years old and begged to babysit Bobby and Jimmy across the street. So we worked out that they would come to my house with an adult homer while I played with them. That was the beginning of a long career from from becoming an Educational Therapist and receiving a Master’s Degree in Child Development. From mother/toddler groups to directing the preschool for the Psychoanalytic Institute, to Child Guidance Clinics, to beginning an elementary school focusing on social intelligence, to teaching Child Development at a City College... I have joyfully committed myself to children and young adults.. this work spoke to my heart and filled me with love. What a blessing it is to have deeply touched a child in th most positive way. The cruelty I now see around me and gun violence is beyond intolerable.PLEASE DO Not VOTE for ANYONE WHO IS NOT FOR GUN SAFETY and excellent thought provoking education for our children. Every young child is depending upon you as are their older brothers and sisters.
Jun 5, 2023·edited Jun 5, 2023Liked by Robert B. Hubbell
While Fascism is mostly a phenomenon of the Right, it is actually a subset of a form of "personalist" strongman rule, necessarily authoritarian, which uses the TOOLS of classic fascism to achieve glorification of the leader. These include the demonization of first one Other, then another Other. Because of usual mantra of "country, religion, order, loyalty, purity" it usually appeals to the Right who want to return to a "golden era" where those of their "kind" were (imagined or not) in complete control. It thus has a very cult-like quality, even if the cult involves thousands or millions of people.
I'm reading Strongmen by Ruth Ben-Ghiat which details historical examples of the Strongman regimes from Mussolini on. It's very revealing of the patterns behind all these movements. The economic structure supported by the movement isn't nearly as important as the tools used to gain power. The dichotomy isn't Fascism/Communism--Stalin certainly used these tools. The dichotomy is much more "strongman"/democracy- (the latter in the sense of people having a voice in their governance, whether as "democracy" or "republic." Many on the right think they've solved something by saying we are "not a democracy but a republic.")
People who support such movements often pooh-pooh the term "fascist" because they think it has to involve Final Solutions and genocide and they aren't proposing THAT, surely not! It's too bad we don't have a single word for "user of fascist tools" because they would have a much harder time denying their support of such tools. Maybe MAGAt will do it. Or to make it international: M*GAt
It may be that Americans need instruction about Fascism and its dangers. I suspect, though, that Americans think of Fascism as foreign, European. We need an American word to get us there. Joe Biden showed an understanding of that need when he called out MAGA Republicans. MAGA Republican is a pretty good perjorative.
Thank you for this excellent newsletter, Robert! It is very much in line with Heather Cox Richardson's piece this morning putting Ron DeSantis smack in the middle of the fascist movement. It is also very much in line with a very powerful and important part of the service at my Unitarian Church yesterday. One of our members, who is transgender themselves, gave a moving summary of how much suffering they had gone through from childhood into their 40s when they finally received a gender affirming care. They began to enjoy life instead of wanting to end it.
They also stessed the fact that in supporting and advocating for the rights of transgender people, we are also advocating for all their friends and family members who also suffer greatly from the attacks on and diminishing rights of their loved ones.
Robert, thank you so much for shining a bright light on the dark issue of fascism in America, and for sounding the alarm for the LGBTW+ community. You are a staunch and wonderful ally. Hitter did target gay people first. Maga hate must be taken seriously and defeated or we are all in danger.
When it comes to freedoms, marginalized individuals have played important roles in history that have not been acknowledged or celebrated.
Two such luminaries are Pauli Murray and Bayard Rustin. Both were "Negro," deeply religious (Episcopalian and Quaker), part of the LGBTQ+ community, and active in nonviolent activism that led to the major advances in Civil Rights.
For anyone who has not heard their names and important roles in the 20th Century,
I suggest the following documentaries:
My Name Is Pauli Murray
and
Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin.
Then share their lived experiences with others who have not heard their names.
I think of fascism as 'surviving at the cost of others'. That is indeed a part of human history, and most of us have it in our background. For women that can have children it may even be legitimate.
'The strongman' may be a center of interest, but the tendency 'to go with the winner' is what may capture a lot of us. As Swedish I think of this when it comes to WWII: Sweden was 'neutral' because a lot of those who wanted to join the war, wanted to go with Nazi Germany. As it became evident that Germany was losing, there was some talk of 'maybe shifting foot', and after the war Sweden was embracing 'America' more than most European countries.
There is a particular irony in attacking sexual varieties, as a small and vulnerable group, at a time when humanity is pouring out hormone disturbing substances at an unprecedented rate.
Thank you for bringing awareness to the danger of discrimination against the LGBTQ communities. We must call it what it is - fascism As a proud mother of a 28 year old gay man I can tell you I have been on high alert since the election of Trump . The LGBTQ community saw the writing on the wall long before everyone else . My son and his friends have all gotten or updated their passports “ in Case “ they need to flee the country . My God can you believe this is 2023 and they have to live in such fear on a daily basis ? I still have hope that we have the power and ability to turn this around . Thank you for being a part of the movement that will help make that happen.
As a new Florida resident, today's newsletter reminded me of how cruel and controlling hatred is. In a few days, I'll celebrate my 79th birthday. As a 14yr old in 1958, I was riding on a Liberty Street bus bound for downtown Houston. I noticed an elderly woman using a cane struggling to get up the steps into the bus. As she began walking to the "back of the bus" I stood up and offered her my seat. The bus driver, who was a big as a refrigerator, stopped the bus, stood up from his seat and yelled at me as if he were an outraged football coach...."Boy, you sit back down. All "N.....s" sit at the back of the bus." I was petrified. Bingo! My introduction to racism began. That memory has guided my actions towards, and for, the rights of all people of color and folks with special needs. The current torrid pace of hateful political animus that rejects any difference, MUST be challenged "with all deliberate speed." (Thurgood Marshall 1964). Mr. Hubble, your relentless advocacy for political balance continues to inspire me. Thank you.
Thank you for this newsletter. So important on all your topics, but I'll focus for now on the first part. You are so right to mention HCR's May 29 essay on the Army pamphlet on Fascism. I'm currently rereading "On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century" by Timothy Snyder. Published in 2017 it is crucial reading for this moment---a small book about big issues. He wrote it in light of the rise of Trump---in the historical light of the rise of fascism, Nazism, and communism in democracies in Europe. The parallels he cites, and the ones that will hit you in the middle of one of his sentences, are more than alarming---they are a call to the front lines. If we don't think that Trump will do exactly what he claims if he becomes president, history is a grim reminder. Prof. Snyder also has a sub stack focused on the war in Ukraine and the history of the Ukraine. Brilliant. From the back cover of Tyranny: "The Founding Fathers tried to protect us from the threat they knew, the tyranny that overcame ancient democracy. Today, our political order faces new threats, not unlike the totalitarianism of he Twentieth century. We are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism, or to communism. Our one advantage is that we might learn from their experience."
In the vein of information being power, I highly recommend Madeleine Albright's fascinating history of fascism: "Fascism: A Warning." In this highly readable study, former Secretary Albright traces how multiple fascists in history rose to power. But even if no other chapters are of interest to the reader, Chapter 15 will be in its focus on Trump's demonization of selected minority groups. Unfortunately, former Secretary Albright passed away before DeSantis's fascist efforts in Florida, or she would be speaking out about him. We must all be vigilant again any attempts to limit personal freedoms or attacks on minority groups or ideas. As Albright beautifully points out, it starts small and gradually grows to monstrous levels if we do not act against it early and often.
It is no wonder that the comments today are of a length and fervor that reflect my feelings about this issue of critical importance. I wish to address what I believe is a necessary corrective for the future of these United States and big "D" Democracy world-wide. Simply put, fascism needs to be defined in a way such that when it appears we know it, can respond with immediacy and can legally repudiate it without fear of infringing on the rights of free speech. When Trump began his campaign in 2015 and began to spew his hateful remarks, it was clear that his intention was to garner the support of the most fringe population of our citizens as he was successful in identifying their sense of alienation as well as the roots of their anger and disenfranchisment. He knew these people were churning with internal violence.
It was then, at the outset, that legislation was needed to assist in distinguishing between legitimate political speech and hate speech. This is not an easy task. Germany has long-standing laws against hate speech, misogyny, extremism, and misinformation. “We are making it clear that anyone who posts hate messages must expect the police to be at the front door afterward,” Holger Münch, the head of the Federal Criminal Police Office, said after raids in 2022 in which over 100 homes were investigated."In doing so, they have flipped inside out what, to American ears, it means to protect free speech. The authorities in Germany argue that they are encouraging and defending free speech by providing a space where people can share opinions without fear of being attacked or abused."
“There has to be a line you cannot cross,” said Svenja Meininghaus, a state prosecutor who attended the raid of the father’s house. “There has to be consequences.” Publicly displaying swastikas and other Nazi symbolism is illegal in Germany, as is denying or diminishing the significance of the Holocaust. Remarks considered to be inciting hatred are punishable with jail time." This had become a common cause in light of an assassination of a well-liked political operative who in 2019 suggested that if anyone disapproved of Germany allowing immigrants into the country, they should leave. He was shot the next day.
Still, Germany struggles to not go too far. They are always on the alert for 'over-defending'. However,
"Daniel Holznagel, a former Justice Ministry official who helped draft the internet enforcement laws passed in 2017, compared the crackdown to going after copyright violators. He said people stopped illegally downloading music and movies as much after authorities began issuing fines and legal warnings. “You can’t prosecute everyone, but it will have a big effect if you show that prosecution is possible,” said Mr. Holznagel.
I find myself impatient and angry that there is any temerity about calling MAGA Republicans fascists. I don't think it's an extreme term to describe the isolationism, the anti-immigration rhetoric, anti-minorities of any kind politics, and general disregard for the rule of law that Republicans have shown increasingly over the past 8 years. I have just asked myself again and again - with great frustration and anger - why has it taken so long to acknowledge it? Fascism in the United States is not new, nor is it in our distant past. All you have to do is read about the political fights of the late 1930s to realize that we are having the same battles today. Lynne Olson has written an excellent history of late 1930s America called "Those Angry Days: Roosevelt, Lindbergh and America's Fight Over World War II 1939-1941". It is one of four histories she has written about the period of World War II , and I highly recommend all four.
Thank you so much for this important newsletter. I do intend to share it out as widely as possible. You aleady know where I stand on this, as, yes, the mother, not of a teenager, but of a 20-something non-binary adult, and mother-in-law to their amazing partner. My kid has just begun Physician Assistant school, with the hope of specializing in trans Healthcare. Their partner is teaching financial skills to Special Ed seniors at a virtual HS. I'm incredibly proud of them, and I worry for their safety and physical and mental health every day.
Rob, thank you, as always, for your focus on this topic. Blessings to you and your family.
Excellent newsletter tonight Robert. The call it action is important. When we hear DeSantis claim he will lead a "war on woke" and "consign it to the trash heap of history" as he did this past week, we can know that Civil War II, which has been going on for awhile, has gotten a lot less "cold" as their rhetoric heats up. The threat of MAGA to the United States is existential. As James Comey pointed out this morning in an interview with Jen Psaki on MSNBC, the Founders never contemplated a "rogue president" in office. If Trump returns to the White House in 2024, they will start the deconstruction of the United States on Day 1, and there is little the system can do to a leader who refuses to recognize any of the system's limitations. The next 18 months are going to determine if the United States remain a constitutional democratic republic or falls as other republics have to those who abandon the republic in favor of taking power.
I have loved children since I was four years old and begged to babysit Bobby and Jimmy across the street. So we worked out that they would come to my house with an adult homer while I played with them. That was the beginning of a long career from from becoming an Educational Therapist and receiving a Master’s Degree in Child Development. From mother/toddler groups to directing the preschool for the Psychoanalytic Institute, to Child Guidance Clinics, to beginning an elementary school focusing on social intelligence, to teaching Child Development at a City College... I have joyfully committed myself to children and young adults.. this work spoke to my heart and filled me with love. What a blessing it is to have deeply touched a child in th most positive way. The cruelty I now see around me and gun violence is beyond intolerable.PLEASE DO Not VOTE for ANYONE WHO IS NOT FOR GUN SAFETY and excellent thought provoking education for our children. Every young child is depending upon you as are their older brothers and sisters.
While Fascism is mostly a phenomenon of the Right, it is actually a subset of a form of "personalist" strongman rule, necessarily authoritarian, which uses the TOOLS of classic fascism to achieve glorification of the leader. These include the demonization of first one Other, then another Other. Because of usual mantra of "country, religion, order, loyalty, purity" it usually appeals to the Right who want to return to a "golden era" where those of their "kind" were (imagined or not) in complete control. It thus has a very cult-like quality, even if the cult involves thousands or millions of people.
I'm reading Strongmen by Ruth Ben-Ghiat which details historical examples of the Strongman regimes from Mussolini on. It's very revealing of the patterns behind all these movements. The economic structure supported by the movement isn't nearly as important as the tools used to gain power. The dichotomy isn't Fascism/Communism--Stalin certainly used these tools. The dichotomy is much more "strongman"/democracy- (the latter in the sense of people having a voice in their governance, whether as "democracy" or "republic." Many on the right think they've solved something by saying we are "not a democracy but a republic.")
People who support such movements often pooh-pooh the term "fascist" because they think it has to involve Final Solutions and genocide and they aren't proposing THAT, surely not! It's too bad we don't have a single word for "user of fascist tools" because they would have a much harder time denying their support of such tools. Maybe MAGAt will do it. Or to make it international: M*GAt
It may be that Americans need instruction about Fascism and its dangers. I suspect, though, that Americans think of Fascism as foreign, European. We need an American word to get us there. Joe Biden showed an understanding of that need when he called out MAGA Republicans. MAGA Republican is a pretty good perjorative.
Thank you for this excellent newsletter, Robert! It is very much in line with Heather Cox Richardson's piece this morning putting Ron DeSantis smack in the middle of the fascist movement. It is also very much in line with a very powerful and important part of the service at my Unitarian Church yesterday. One of our members, who is transgender themselves, gave a moving summary of how much suffering they had gone through from childhood into their 40s when they finally received a gender affirming care. They began to enjoy life instead of wanting to end it.
They also stessed the fact that in supporting and advocating for the rights of transgender people, we are also advocating for all their friends and family members who also suffer greatly from the attacks on and diminishing rights of their loved ones.
Robert, thank you so much for shining a bright light on the dark issue of fascism in America, and for sounding the alarm for the LGBTW+ community. You are a staunch and wonderful ally. Hitter did target gay people first. Maga hate must be taken seriously and defeated or we are all in danger.
Thank you, Robert.
"What's in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet." Fascism by any other name would just smell.
When it comes to freedoms, marginalized individuals have played important roles in history that have not been acknowledged or celebrated.
Two such luminaries are Pauli Murray and Bayard Rustin. Both were "Negro," deeply religious (Episcopalian and Quaker), part of the LGBTQ+ community, and active in nonviolent activism that led to the major advances in Civil Rights.
For anyone who has not heard their names and important roles in the 20th Century,
I suggest the following documentaries:
My Name Is Pauli Murray
and
Brother Outsider: The Life of Bayard Rustin.
Then share their lived experiences with others who have not heard their names.
I think of fascism as 'surviving at the cost of others'. That is indeed a part of human history, and most of us have it in our background. For women that can have children it may even be legitimate.
'The strongman' may be a center of interest, but the tendency 'to go with the winner' is what may capture a lot of us. As Swedish I think of this when it comes to WWII: Sweden was 'neutral' because a lot of those who wanted to join the war, wanted to go with Nazi Germany. As it became evident that Germany was losing, there was some talk of 'maybe shifting foot', and after the war Sweden was embracing 'America' more than most European countries.
There is a particular irony in attacking sexual varieties, as a small and vulnerable group, at a time when humanity is pouring out hormone disturbing substances at an unprecedented rate.
Thank you for bringing awareness to the danger of discrimination against the LGBTQ communities. We must call it what it is - fascism As a proud mother of a 28 year old gay man I can tell you I have been on high alert since the election of Trump . The LGBTQ community saw the writing on the wall long before everyone else . My son and his friends have all gotten or updated their passports “ in Case “ they need to flee the country . My God can you believe this is 2023 and they have to live in such fear on a daily basis ? I still have hope that we have the power and ability to turn this around . Thank you for being a part of the movement that will help make that happen.
As a new Florida resident, today's newsletter reminded me of how cruel and controlling hatred is. In a few days, I'll celebrate my 79th birthday. As a 14yr old in 1958, I was riding on a Liberty Street bus bound for downtown Houston. I noticed an elderly woman using a cane struggling to get up the steps into the bus. As she began walking to the "back of the bus" I stood up and offered her my seat. The bus driver, who was a big as a refrigerator, stopped the bus, stood up from his seat and yelled at me as if he were an outraged football coach...."Boy, you sit back down. All "N.....s" sit at the back of the bus." I was petrified. Bingo! My introduction to racism began. That memory has guided my actions towards, and for, the rights of all people of color and folks with special needs. The current torrid pace of hateful political animus that rejects any difference, MUST be challenged "with all deliberate speed." (Thurgood Marshall 1964). Mr. Hubble, your relentless advocacy for political balance continues to inspire me. Thank you.
Thank you for this newsletter. So important on all your topics, but I'll focus for now on the first part. You are so right to mention HCR's May 29 essay on the Army pamphlet on Fascism. I'm currently rereading "On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century" by Timothy Snyder. Published in 2017 it is crucial reading for this moment---a small book about big issues. He wrote it in light of the rise of Trump---in the historical light of the rise of fascism, Nazism, and communism in democracies in Europe. The parallels he cites, and the ones that will hit you in the middle of one of his sentences, are more than alarming---they are a call to the front lines. If we don't think that Trump will do exactly what he claims if he becomes president, history is a grim reminder. Prof. Snyder also has a sub stack focused on the war in Ukraine and the history of the Ukraine. Brilliant. From the back cover of Tyranny: "The Founding Fathers tried to protect us from the threat they knew, the tyranny that overcame ancient democracy. Today, our political order faces new threats, not unlike the totalitarianism of he Twentieth century. We are no wiser than the Europeans who saw democracy yield to fascism, Nazism, or to communism. Our one advantage is that we might learn from their experience."
In the vein of information being power, I highly recommend Madeleine Albright's fascinating history of fascism: "Fascism: A Warning." In this highly readable study, former Secretary Albright traces how multiple fascists in history rose to power. But even if no other chapters are of interest to the reader, Chapter 15 will be in its focus on Trump's demonization of selected minority groups. Unfortunately, former Secretary Albright passed away before DeSantis's fascist efforts in Florida, or she would be speaking out about him. We must all be vigilant again any attempts to limit personal freedoms or attacks on minority groups or ideas. As Albright beautifully points out, it starts small and gradually grows to monstrous levels if we do not act against it early and often.
It is no wonder that the comments today are of a length and fervor that reflect my feelings about this issue of critical importance. I wish to address what I believe is a necessary corrective for the future of these United States and big "D" Democracy world-wide. Simply put, fascism needs to be defined in a way such that when it appears we know it, can respond with immediacy and can legally repudiate it without fear of infringing on the rights of free speech. When Trump began his campaign in 2015 and began to spew his hateful remarks, it was clear that his intention was to garner the support of the most fringe population of our citizens as he was successful in identifying their sense of alienation as well as the roots of their anger and disenfranchisment. He knew these people were churning with internal violence.
It was then, at the outset, that legislation was needed to assist in distinguishing between legitimate political speech and hate speech. This is not an easy task. Germany has long-standing laws against hate speech, misogyny, extremism, and misinformation. “We are making it clear that anyone who posts hate messages must expect the police to be at the front door afterward,” Holger Münch, the head of the Federal Criminal Police Office, said after raids in 2022 in which over 100 homes were investigated."In doing so, they have flipped inside out what, to American ears, it means to protect free speech. The authorities in Germany argue that they are encouraging and defending free speech by providing a space where people can share opinions without fear of being attacked or abused."
“There has to be a line you cannot cross,” said Svenja Meininghaus, a state prosecutor who attended the raid of the father’s house. “There has to be consequences.” Publicly displaying swastikas and other Nazi symbolism is illegal in Germany, as is denying or diminishing the significance of the Holocaust. Remarks considered to be inciting hatred are punishable with jail time." This had become a common cause in light of an assassination of a well-liked political operative who in 2019 suggested that if anyone disapproved of Germany allowing immigrants into the country, they should leave. He was shot the next day.
Still, Germany struggles to not go too far. They are always on the alert for 'over-defending'. However,
"Daniel Holznagel, a former Justice Ministry official who helped draft the internet enforcement laws passed in 2017, compared the crackdown to going after copyright violators. He said people stopped illegally downloading music and movies as much after authorities began issuing fines and legal warnings. “You can’t prosecute everyone, but it will have a big effect if you show that prosecution is possible,” said Mr. Holznagel.
I find myself impatient and angry that there is any temerity about calling MAGA Republicans fascists. I don't think it's an extreme term to describe the isolationism, the anti-immigration rhetoric, anti-minorities of any kind politics, and general disregard for the rule of law that Republicans have shown increasingly over the past 8 years. I have just asked myself again and again - with great frustration and anger - why has it taken so long to acknowledge it? Fascism in the United States is not new, nor is it in our distant past. All you have to do is read about the political fights of the late 1930s to realize that we are having the same battles today. Lynne Olson has written an excellent history of late 1930s America called "Those Angry Days: Roosevelt, Lindbergh and America's Fight Over World War II 1939-1941". It is one of four histories she has written about the period of World War II , and I highly recommend all four.