Fascism: What It Is & How To Fight It
Fascism:What It Is& How toFight ItLeon Trotsky
2Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight ItContentsIntroduction by Doug Lorimer . 31.2.3.4.5.6.7.8.9.10.11.12.Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight ItBy Leon TrotskyWhat Is Fascism?. 5How Mussolini Triumphed . 7The Fascist Danger Looms in Germany . 11An Aesop Fable . 15The German Cops and Army. 16Bourgeoisie, Petty Bourgeoisie and Proletariat . 18The German Catastrophe. The Responsibility of the Leadership . 22The Collapse of Bourgeois Democracy . 28Does the Petty Bourgeoisie Fear Revolution? . 30The Danger of Ultraleft Tactics in Fighting Fascists . 32The Workers’ Militia and Its Opponents . 35Build the Revolutionary Party! . 43Glossary . 44Resistance Books 2002ISBN 1876646314Published by Resistance Books, resistancebooks.com
IntroductionBy Doug LorimerLiberals, petty-bourgeois leftists and even some Marxists use the world fascist as anepithet or political swearword against right-wing figures whom they despise, orreactionaries in general. Indiscriminate use of the term reflects vagueness about itsmeaning. That so many leftists cannot define fascism in any more exact terms thanreactionary dictatorship is not wholly their fault. Whether they are aware of it or not,much of their intellectual heritage comes from the social-democratic and Stalinistmovements, which dominated the left in the 1930s when fascism rose to power inGermany. These movements permitted the victory of German fascism (Nazism)without a shot being fired against it. They displayed an utterly inadequateunderstanding of the nature and dynamics of fascism or the way to defeat it. After theNazis had come to power, the social-democrats and Stalinists had much to hide and sorefrained from making a scientific analysis of this new socio-political phenomenonwhich would, at least, have educated subsequent generations of radical workers.But there is a scientific analysis of fascism. It was made by the exiled Bolshevikrevolutionary Leon Trotsky not as a postmortem, but during the rise of fascism. Thiswas — along with his analysis of the nature of Stalinism — Trotsky’s greatestcontribution to Marxist theory. He began the task after Mussolini’s victory in Italy in1922 and brought it to a high point in the years preceding Hitler’s triumph in Germanyin 1933.In his attempts to awaken the German Communist Party and the CommunistInternational (Comintern) to the mortal danger that Nazism posed to the Germanworkers’ movement and to the Soviet Union, Trotsky made a point-by-point critiqueof the policies of the social-democratic and Stalinist parties.In his writings on Germany (and France) in the 1930s, Trotsky pointed out that thespecific nature of fascism that makes it different from all other forms of antilabourDoug Lorimer is a member of the National Executive of the Democratic Socialist Party.
4Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight Itreaction is that it does not rely primarily upon police-state methods of repression. Thedistinguishing characteristic of fascism is that it recruits desperate middle-class, lumpenand backward working-class elements into a mass movement to demoralise, intimidateand atomise the workers’ movement through a campaign of assassination and terror.Flowing from this analysis Trotsky argued that the only effective way in which theworkers’ movement could defeat a fascist movement was to draw the mass of workersinto a unified campaign of countermobilisations, including armed self-defence by aworkers’ militia involving “tens and later hundreds of thousands of fighters”. Hecounterposed this strategy both to liberal-reformist passivity, with its reliance onappeals to the capitalist state to disarm and suppress the fascist gangs, and to ultraleftadventurism, with its infantile illusion that fascism can be defeated by an isolatedmilitant minority carrying out physical attacks on fascist meetings and rallies.During the rise of the fascist movement in Germany the Comintern’s orientationwas dominated by ultraleft phrasemongering — aimed at frightening the ruling circlesof the imperialist “democracies” (Britain, France and the United States) into coming toa diplomatic deal with the Soviet bureaucracy. After the Nazis came to power inGermany and the real magnitude of the defeat suffered by the workers’ movementand the threat to the Soviet Union by a rearmed German imperialism became apparentto the ruling clique in the Kremlin, the Stalinists swung over to a policy of collaborationwith “democratic” bourgeois forces to counter the fascist regimes. In both cases, though,their policy was hostile to a strategy of mass, independent working-class politicalaction.The military defeat of Italian and German fascism in World War II led mostpeople to conclude that fascism was finished once and for all. However, ever sincethen, fascist groups and tendencies have arisen from time to time in almost everycapitalist country. The germ of fascism is endemic in capitalism and a crisis can raise itto epidemic proportions unless drastic countermeasures are applied by the workers’movement.Since forewarned is forearmed, we are publishing this small selection of Trotsky’swritings on the subject as a weapon for the antifascist arsenal.This compilation largely follows earlier editions under the same title but we haveslightly altered the selection, adding two items and subtracting one.n
1. What Is Fascism?What is fascism? The name originated in Italy. Were all the forms ofcounterrevolutionary dictatorship fascist or not (that is, prior to the advent of fascismin Italy)?The former dictatorship in Spain of Primo de Rivera [1923-30] is called a fascistdictatorship by the Comintern. Is this correct or not? We believe that it is incorrect.The fascist movement in Italy was a spontaneous movement of large masses, withnew leaders from the rank and file. It is a plebeian movement in origin, directed andfinanced by big capitalist powers. It issued forth from the petty bourgeoisie, thelumpenproletariat, and even to a certain extent from the proletarian masses; Mussolini,a former socialist, is a “self-made” man arising from this movement.Primo de Rivera was an aristocrat. He occupied a high military and bureaucraticpost and was chief governor of Catalonia. He accomplished his overthrow with the aidof state and military forces. The dictatorships of Spain and Italy are two totally differentforms of dictatorship. It is necessary to distinguish between them. Mussolini haddifficulty in reconciling many old military institutions with the fascist militia. Thisproblem did not exist for Primo de Rivera.The movement in Germany is most analogous to the Italian. It is a mass movement,with its leaders employing a great deal of socialist demagogy. This is necessary for thecreation of the mass movement.The genuine basis [for fascism] is the petty bourgeoisie. In Italy it has a very largebase — the petty bourgeoisie of the towns and cities, and the peasantry. In Germany,likewise, there is a large base for fascism. [ ]It may be said, and this is true to a certain extent, that the new middle class, thefunctionaries of the state, the private administrators, etc., etc., can form such a base.But this is a new question that must be analysed. [ ]In order to be capable of foreseeing anything with regard to fascism, it is necessaryExtracts from a letter to Max Shachtman, November 15, 1931.
6Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight Itto have a definition of that idea. What is fascism? What are its base, its form, and itscharacteristics? How will its development take place? [ ]It is necessary to proceed in a scientific and Marxist manner.nBroken on the wheel of fascism. From a 1934 photomontage by John Heartfieldentitled “As in the Middle Ages, so in the Third Reich”.
2. How Mussolini TriumphedAt the moment that the “normal” police and military resources of the bourgeoisdictatorship, together with their parliamentary screens, no longer suffice to hold societyin a state of equilibrium — the turn of the fascist regime arrives. Through the fascistagency, capitalism sets in motion the masses of the crazed petty bourgeoisie and thebands of declassed and demoralised lumpenproletariat; all the countless human beingswhom finance capital itself has brought to desperation and frenzy. From fascism thebourgeoisie demands a thorough job; once it has resorted to methods of civil war, itinsists on having peace for a period of years. And the fascist agency, by utilising thepetty bourgeoisie as a battering ram, by overwhelming all obstacles in its path, does athorough job. After fascism is victorious, finance capital gathers into its hands, as in avice of steel, directly and immediately, all the organs and institutions of sovereignty,the executive, administrative, and educational powers of the state: the entire stateapparatus together with the army, the municipalities, the universities, the schools, thepress, the trade unions, and the cooperatives. When a state turns fascist, it doesn’tmean only that the forms and methods of government are changed in accordancewith the patterns set by Mussolini — the changes in this sphere ultimately play a minorrole — but it means, primarily and above all, that the workers’ organisations areannihilated; that the proletariat is reduced to an amorphous state; and that a system ofadministration is created which penetrates deeply into the masses and which serves tofrustrate the independent crystallisation of the proletariat. Therein precisely is the gistof fascism. [ ]á á áItalian fascism was the immediate outgrowth of the betrayal by the reformists of theuprising of the Italian proletariat. From the time the [first world] war ended, there wasan upward trend in the revolutionary movement in Italy, and in September 1920 itFrom What Next? Vital Questions for the German Proletariat, January 1932.
8Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight Itresulted in the seizure of factories and industries by the workers. The dictatorship ofthe proletariat was an actual fact; all that was lacking was to organise it and to drawfrom it all the necessary conclusions. The social-democracy took fright and sprangback. After its bold and heroic exertions, the proletariat was left facing the void. Thedisruption of the revolutionary movement became the most important factor in thegrowth of fascism. In September, the revolutionary advance came to a standstill; andNovember already witnessed the first major demonstration of the fascists (the seizureof Bologna).True, the proletariat, even after the September catastrophe, was capable of wagingdefensive battles. But the social-democracy was concerned with only one thing: towithdraw the workers from under fire at the cost of one concession after the other.The social-democracy hoped that the docile conduct of the workers would restore the“public opinion” of the bourgeoisie against the fascists. Moreover, the reformists evenbanked strongly upon the help of Victor Emmanuel. To the last hour, they restrainedthe workers with might and main from giving battle to Mussolini’s bands. It availedthem nothing. The crown, along with the upper crust of the bourgeoisie, swung overto the side of fascism. Convinced at the last moment that fascism was not to bechecked by obedience, the social-democrats issued a call to the workers for a generalstrike. But their proclamation suffered a fiasco. The reformists had dampened thepowder so long, in their fear lest it should explode, that when they finally and with atrembling hand applied a burning fuse to it, the powder did not catch.Two years after its inception, fascism was in power. It entrenched itself thanks tothe fact that the first period of its overlordship coincided with a favourable economicconjuncture, which followed the depression of 1921-22. The fascists crushed theretreating proletariat beneath the offensive power of the petty bourgeoisie. But thiswas not achieved at a single blow. Even after he assumed power, Mussolini proceededon his course with due caution: he lacked as yet ready-made models. During the firsttwo years, not even the constitution was altered. The fascist government took on thecharacter of a coalition. In the meantime, the fascist bands were busy at work withclubs, knives, and pistols. Thus, slowly the fascist government was created that meantthe complete strangulation of all independent mass organisations.Mussolini attained this at the cost of bureaucratising the fascist party itself. Afterutilising the onrushing forces of the petty bourgeoisie, fascism strangled it within thevice of the bourgeois state. He couldn’t have done otherwise, for the disillusionmentof the masses he had united was transforming itself into the most immediate dangerahead. Fascism, become bureaucratic, approaches very closely to other forms ofmilitary and police dictatorship. It no longer possesses its former social support. The
How Mussolini Triumphed9chief reserve of fascism — the petty bourgeoisie — has been spent. Only historicalinertia enables the fascist government to keep the proletariat in a state of dispersionand helplessness. [ ]In its politics as regards Hitler, the German social-democracy has not been able toadd a single word: all it does is repeat more ponderously whatever the Italian reformistsin their own time performed with greater flights of temperament. The latter explainedfascism as a postwar psychosis; the German social-democracy sees in it a “Versailles”or crisis psychosis. In both instances, the reformists shut their eyes to the organiccharacter of fascism as a mass movement growing out of the collapse of capitalism.Fearful of the revolutionary mobilisation of the workers, the Italian reformistsbanked all their hopes on “the state”. Their slogan was, “Victor Emmanuel! Help!Intervene!” The German social-democracy lacks such a democratic bulwark as amonarch loyal to the constitution. So they must be content with a president:“Hindenburg! Help! Intervene!”While waging battle against Mussolini, that is, while retreating before him, Turatilet loose his dazzling motto: “One must have the manhood to be a coward.” TheGerman reformists are less frisky with their slogans. They demand “Courage underunpopularity” (Mut zur Unpopularität), which amounts to the same thing. One mustnot be afraid of the unpopularity which has been aroused by one’s own cowardlytemporising with the enemy.Identical causes produce identical effects. Were the march of events dependentupon the Social-Democratic Party leadership, Hitler’s career would be assured.One must admit, however, that the German Communist Party has also learnedlittle from the Italian experience.The Italian Communist Party came into being almost simultaneously with fascism.But the same conditions of revolutionary ebb tide which carried the fascists to power,served to deter the development of the Communist Party. It did not take account ofthe full sweep of the fascist danger; it lulled itself with revolutionary illusions; it wasirreconcilably antagonistic to the policy of the united front; in short it ailed from all theinfantile diseases. Small wonder! It was only two years old. In its eyes, fascism appearedto be only “capitalist reaction”. The particular traits of fascism which spring from themobilisation of the petty bourgeoisie against the proletariat, the Communist Partywas unable to discern. Italian comrades inform me that with the sole exception ofGramsci, the Communist Party wouldn’t even allow for the possibility of the fascistsseizing power. Once the proletarian revolution had suffered defeat, and capitalismhad held its ground and the counterrevolution had triumphed, how could there beany further kind of counterrevolutionary upheaval? The bourgeoisie cannot rise up
10Fascism: What It Is and How to Fight Itagainst itself! Such was the gist of the political orientation of the Italian CommunistParty. Moreover, one must not let out of sight the fact that Italian fascism was then anew phenomenon, and only in the process of formation; it wouldn’t have been an easytask even for a more experienced party to distinguish its specific traits.The leadership of the German Communist Party reproduces today almost literallythe position from which the Italian communists took their point of departure: fascismis nothing else but capitalist reaction; from the point of view of the proletariat, thedifferences between diverse types of capitalist reaction are meaningless. This vulgarradicalism is the less excusable because the German party is much older than theItalian was at a corresponding period; in addition, Marxism has been enriched now bythe tragic experience in Italy. To insist that fascism is already here, or to deny the verypossibility of its coming to power, amounts politically to one and the same thing. Byignoring the specific nature of fascism, the will to fight against it inevitably becomesparalysed.The brunt of the blame must be borne, of course, by the leadership of theComintern. Italian communists above all others were duty-bound to raise their voicesin alarm. But Stalin, with Manuilsky, compelled them to disavow the most importantlessons of their own annihilation. We have already observed with what diligent alacrityErcoli switched over to the position of social-fascism, i.e., to the position of passivelywaiting for the fascist victory in Germany.n
3. The Fascist Danger Looms inGermanyThe official press of the Comintern is now depicting the results of the [September1930] German elections as a prodigious victory of communism, which places the sloganof a Soviet Germany on the order of the day. The bureaucratic optimists do not wantto reflect upon the meaning of the relationship of forces which is disclosed by theelection statistics. They examine the figure of communist votes gained independentlyof the revolutionary tasks created by the situation and the obstacles it sets up.The Communist Party received around 4,600,000 votes as against 3,300,000 in1928. From the viewpoint of “normal” parliamentary mechanics, the gain of 1,300,000votes is considerable even if we take into consideration the rise in the total number ofvoters. But the gain of the party pales completely beside the leap of fascism from800,000 to 6,400,000 votes. Of no less significance for evaluating the elections is the factthat the social-democracy, in spite of substantial losses, retained its basic cadres andstill received a considerably greater number of workers’ votes [8,600,000] than theCommunist Party.Meanwhile, if we should ask ourselves what combination of international anddomestic circumstances could be capable of turning the working class towardscommunism with greater velocity, we could not find an example of more favourablecircumstances for such a turn than the situation in present-day Germany: Young’snoose, the economic crisis, the disintegration of the rulers, the crisis of parliamentarism,the terrific self-exposure of the social-democracy in power. From the viewpoint ofthese concrete historical circumstances, the specific gravity
The genuine basis [for fascism] is the petty bourgeoisie. In Italy it has a very large base — the petty bourgeoisie of the towns and
Fascism Rises in Europe Section 3 - VocabtoKnow u Fascism . leader who guided and brought order to the state. uFascists wore uniforms of a certain color, used special salutes and held mass rallies. Fascism vs. Communism uIn some ways Fascism was similar to Communism:
Fascism’s Rise in Italy Fascism (FASH IHZ uhm) was a new, militant political movement that empha-sized loyalty to the state and obedience to its leader. Unlike communism, fascism had no clearly defined theory or program. Nevertheless, most Fascists shared several ideas. They preached an extreme form of nationalism, or loyalty to one’s .
Map of Modern Italy xiii Introduction: Locating Fascism 1 Part I The Conquest of Power, 1915–29 11 1 The War, the Post-war Crisis and the Rise of Fascism, 1915–22 13 Politics and society in post-unification Italy 13 The war in Italy 20 ‘1919-ism’ and early Fascism 28 The 1919 el
Fascism, the debt of that doctrine to the thought of Giovanni Gentile, and the continuity of doctrine in time prior to the advent of Fascism. As has been argued elsewhere. Fascism grew out of the despair and hu miliation of an Italy
FASCISM The early twentieth century in Italy was a crucial period in its history. Mussolini and Fascism surveys all the important issues and topics of the period including the origins and rise of Fascism, Mussolini as Prime Minister and
Fascism, Anti-Fascism and the Idea of Nation: Italian Historiography and Public Debate since the 1980s Marco Bresciani Department of Political and Social Sciences, via delle Pandette 32, 50127 Florence, Italy marco.bresc
development of Fascism and Anti- Fascism in the six months since May 1934. The outstanding development in the world of Fascism during this period has been the signs of the first stages of a gathering crisis of Fasc
15-3 Fascism Rises in Europe Fascism—political movement that is extremely nationalistic, gives power to a dictator, and takes away individual rights . The economic crisis of the Great Depression led to the loss of democracy in some European countries. In these countries,
