I think a lot of Americans have trouble wrapping their heads around the concept of fascism for a variety of reasons; some intrinsic to fascism itself, and some that are products of the external environment we're all raised in. Part of the problem is that fascism isn't really an ideology, so much as a reactionary recipe for the accumulation of power; which allows fascist movements to spring out of a wide variety of political struggles, and assume a wide variety of early forms - before more or less coalescing into the same old nazi shit once they reach power. It also probably doesn't help that we live in a propaganda model environment that actively encourages a narrow understanding of what fascism is so as to avoid the populace ever connecting it with American anti-communism, predatory capitalism, and free market fundamentalist ideology; but that's a much larger discussion for another day.

I've spent many years of my life studying fascism and fascist movements, so I can assure you that the Trump regime you're watching is fascist, but at the end of the day if you don't really understand what that means or aren't able to see the ways this Christian Nationalist movement are (poorly) trying to hide their fascist intentions, that isn't going to help you much. For you folks, I'd like to share this eleven minute informative video published on The Humanist Report that talks about the kidnapping and trafficking of Abrego Garcia, and why it signals the regime's intention to establish what is essentially an authoritarian dictatorship. The key here however, is that the host talks about the events in the context of "state terror" using analysis from a historian of fascism: Timothy Synder.

While I might quibble with Mike's assertion that oligarchic America was merely a "flawed" liberal democracy before Trump's second inauguration, the framework of "state terror" articulated here is simple and useful; particularly for folks who're still learning about fascism. Pay close attention to the parts about inverting the justice system to escape the law, rather than applying it, and the three forms it takes - the leader principle, the state of exception, and the zone of statelessness.

Expert on Fascism Has a CHILLING Warning About What Comes Next

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w1TGlDB5uB0

"Timothy Snyder, a historian and author of ‘On Tyranny,’ recently announced his decision to leave America due to rising authoritarianism. He also reacted to Trump’s defiance of the Supreme Court by warning that it marks the beginning of a new era of “state terror” in the United States, where the government coerces people through the selective enforcement of laws and by repudiating former legal norms. In this video we’ll breakdown his warning about this phase we’re entering in and discuss what it means for Americans."

@coloradosun

From the 20 lessons for resisting #Authoritarianism from the Timothy Snyder book #OnTyranny, written in 2016.

1. Do not obey in advance.

Most of the power of authoritarianism is freely given. In times like these, individuals think ahead about what a more repressive government will want, and then offer themselves without being asked. A citizen who adapts in this way is teaching power what it can do.

If that does not hold, then nothing else does. If we have the law, then violence may not be committed by one person against another on the basis of namecalling or strong feelings. This applies to everyone, above all to the president, whose constitutional function is to enforce the laws.

The second part is deterring the #press, or anyone else, from challenging the perversion by associating anyone who objects with crime & terror. This was the role #StephenMiller played when he said yesterday in the White House that reporters "want foreign terrorists in the country who kidnap women & children."

Yesterday in the White House, the Salvadoran president showed the way, referring to #KilmarAbregoGarcia as a "terrorist" without any basis whatsoever. The Americans treated him as a criminal, even though he was charged with no crime.

The first part of controlling the #language is inverting the meaning: whatever the government does is good, because by definition…its victims are the "criminals" & the "terrorists."