It is often the case that the term fascist is used to describe conservative politicians. When any politician who leans right makes a move that upsets people, there is always a shout of fascism by, often, someone uneducated on what it really means.
The Western descent toward fascism is a phrase I have heard many a time on the internet and even in person, but what does it mean?
Starting simple, fascism is a political ideology and movement characterized by dictatorship and far-right authoritarian rule. It was founded by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini during his control over Italy, following the harsh and cruel rule and standards that he imposed on his country.
Mussolini controlled Italy from 1922 to 1925 as an elected Prime Minister, and from 1925 to 1943 as a Fascist Dictator. As history repeats itself, so does the ebb and flow of political ideologies that remain in power worldwide, and they typically follow a trend.
It is true that we are currently in a movement toward far-right governments globally, and that shift is caused by something indeterminable that we may not be able to recognize for the next few years. But what we can recognize is how this shift is affecting us, and look to history to see what our future may hold.
The biggest fear—and one that reflects our fascist claims—is the fear of dictatorship. All dictatorships have to start somewhere, and they typically start with democratically elected leaders who seize control. Looking at dictators of the past and present, we see that many notable dictators such as Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, and Vladimir Putin all started their rule through democratic and fair elections and then eventually exploited their power and took control.
So the current fear is that President Donald Trump, democratically elected, will attempt to seize control of the government and pursue a third term. And in all honesty, despite the strength of our government and the Constitution, this isn’t an impossibility.
Just recently, Trump released a Trump 2028 hat, and whether it’s a joke or a legitimate proposal, it poses a lot of threats for the future in a country where its citizens can’t be assured that their constitution will be upheld.
But does this add up to an entire descent toward fascism? Not necessarily.
On social media and even in real life, we often surround ourselves with an echo chamber. People and an online presence that all reflect our own beliefs, leading us to believe that the beliefs that we hold are the norm or more widespread than they may actually be in reality.
Particularly so in the more liberal leaning division of the internet in multiple online spaces such as Instagram, TikTok, and X, this repeated phrase and idea that we are in a movement toward fascism leads people to believe that it’s true. The repetition of the claim bolsters this idea in their heads that everyone thinks like this, even if in reality, only those with similarly aligned beliefs are repeating it.
But I believe that a large part of this phrase, and the primary part that makes it untrue, is its statement of “the West.” When people say the “Western” descent toward fascism, Western, in this case, refers to the United States. However, Western, in most cases, also includes Western Europe and Australia; in other words, first-world countries.
I think that an America-centric view of the world is only natural when it is the country you live in; without exposure to differing opinions and worldviews from your own, you end up sheltered and led to believe that everyone in the world views things as you do. However, even if this viewpoint is only natural, it is also very damaging, and this corruption and distortion of reality lead to a lack of empathy, critical thinking, and openness to ideas different from your own.
So, to completely break down the phrase, here are my problems with it.
The word “Western” is skewed based on one’s viewpoint, and most often is used to refer to just the United States, as in all truth, a majority of Americans aren’t educated on other countries’ policies and governments.
The word “descent” makes the issue at hand seem measurable and quantifiable when, in reality, I don’t know if that is something that we are able to justifiably claim without an agreed-upon basis and measure for this turn toward far-right governments.
The word “fascism” is where the significant issue lies. Fascism is an extremely radical form of government and we’ve diluted the word overtime by overusing it in the context of governments that compared to original fascist governments, such as Mussolini’s Italy and Nazi Germany, bare little resemblance to modern day Western governments.
When we overuse this phrase, it weakens its meaning and takes away from the true meaning of what it is to live in an oppressive society, a society that we are not currently living under. So while I do strongly believe that we as a society, nation, and world are facing staggeringly scary issues in our future, I don’t think that this phrase is the correct way to label our fears.
