Across the United States, far-right ideologies have been growing in popularity; seen everywhere from podcasters to news outlets, indications of the rise in fascism have taken form in jarring ways. In America, major signs of fascism have appeared, but these indications have become so normalized that we ignore the severity.
Merriam-Webster defines fascism as “exalting nation and often race above the individual, associated with a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, and that is characterized by severe economic and social regimentation and by forcible suppression of opposition.”
This means that under the system of fascism, there is one supreme leader, nation, and often race. Equality has no place in fascism. Diversity has no place in fascism. Anyone who doesn’t fit what is seen as “right” is systematically oppressed with no way out.
Junior Amber Becerra says, “[Fascism]’s bad, it’s not good. I think they should stop.”
The idea sounds dystopian, crazy, and impossible for anyone with a brain to live under. However, in 1930s Germany, people were jobless and worried about what their future would turn into with a lack of resources. Hitler was able to use this economic insecurity to create a common enemy among his people and blame Germany’s problems on external reasons. Similarly, today, in the United States, following COVID-19, employment rates have dropped, and the cost of living has risen significantly, leading to widespread insecurity among Americans.
Current political leaders and news outlets have painted immigrants and people of color as the root of America’s problems instead of focusing on the broken system, setting the stage for a repeat in history.
Senior Giuseppe Galioto said, “The origins of these [fascist] efforts often start with economic issues.”
Expensive groceries and rent enrage the public, but more signs of fascism have come to light.
Galioto continues, “Right now, mass military force, backed only by the government, with a large-scale civilian opposition, the blinding of ordinary people by fear mongering, tactics to get more power to your party, and not keeping checks and balances in place are all happening right now. [There is] already an emerging rebellion against it, but not nearly enough of what we need, especially in these early stages. We’ve seen this stuff before, and we know how we’ve stopped that before, and we need to do it earlier.”
Because we’ve lived through history, we can recognize our mistakes and grow instead of repeating them.
Galioto carries on by saying, “Fight a class war, not a culture war. We’ve often chosen the wrong option because we’ve put too much faith in politicians to save us from our plight, and they have time and time again failed at that.”
Don’t let media and political leaders blur your vision of the actual problems that are going on. Don’t let them give you a common enemy; let the factors that could divide us be the thing that brings us together.
Galioto said, “No cultural group is gonna be all the same, and that’s the beauty of it. It’s beauty that we have this melting pot of a nation with these influences of the world; it’s wonderful, yet nobody is ever saying we’re all the same because the beauty is that we’re not, and we can learn to live together in wonderful ways and meld our cultures.”
Billionaires who hoard wealth attempt to homogenize us to stay at the top of the pyramid; they get rid of the only thing that gives the ordinary person a purpose: their uniqueness. By feeding us social media content that encourages one “correct” point of view, devise politics, and a war against one common enemy, it’s easy for these billionaires to stay off the hook. By creating more problems, it’s easy to cover the first one.
These leaders and billionaires are the sole reason healthcare is inaccessible, housing is impossibly expensive, and a full fridge is a privilege. At the rate they are going, fascism, zero freedom, is closer than ever.
Although things are heading towards a bleak direction, the fight is far from over. Galioto continues by saying, “Never stop speaking out. Do your best to support things that don’t support the things you’re against. As much as you can try to support the causes you think are important through who you support financially and who you support politically.”
People of any age can use their voice. High school seniors can vote on political issues, teenagers as young as 13 can post and amplify both their own and others’ voices on social media, and conversations can happen at any time of the day.
Galioto finishes by saying, “Social media is super beneficial for getting your voice out there. [Through social media, you are] able to bolster voices you agree with and be able to fully communicate their ideas. Just speak out, never stop speaking out, find your outlet. Seniors, use your power and be educated and research the things that you’re voting on so that you can protect yourselves and protect all of us.”
Recognition of patterns is the first step to breaking them. The next step is taking action for what you believe in, and refraining from participating in what you don’t. No action is too small; every word you speak has an impact, so make sure it counts.