A few years ago it was hot to compare the USA to the short-lived Weimar Republic of Germany, the one that was replaced by the nazis. The situation in Germany was largely attributed to the punitive treatment of country after World War One. Somehow (demonizing socialism, never meaningfully addressing any crimes the US committed, never willing to face the hateful core of America’s real values), we did this to ourselves, no major military loss necessary. Congrats? Anyway, the comparison never stopped being valid.
Right now we are even closer to nazi rule than we were under Trump himself. The way power is structured in this country guarantees the GOP a seat at the table, and they’ve gone full goosestep. Many states are already falling under laws that are equivalent to the book burning at the Magnus Hirschfeld’s Institut für Sexualwissenschaft. Don’t say pronouns law? Rampant book banning? The dismantling of a single university in Florida under that state’s governor? The exact mirror of Bolsonaro’s raids on universities in Brazil. Expect it to go nationwide as soon as we have a nazi president. I’d say republican but at this point that is fully redundant.
The howling jackals of fascism are gearing up for total conquest, and all they need is the executive branch to clinch the end of our weak-ass imitation of a democracy. It’s just a matter of time. They will get the presidency again. One possible way to prevent a future nazi president from devastating this country with executive orders would be to curtail the powers of the president substantially. I’d like to see that happen, but power fucken looooves power, and will never put meaningful restrictions on new powers that have been allowed. The same way we can’t make meaningful taxes happen on the rich once they’ve been given breaks.
I was put in mind of this by the way there are good things happening right now, mostly from executive action. There are executive orders, but also appointed heads of government agencies making progressive policies within their remit – like the way you can, for the moment, change your gender marker on your Social Security card or passport without need for proof documents. Expect all of that to be reversed with a single pen stroke under the next nazi president.
It’s best to just be prepared for it, emotionally and physically. Think, what will my role be under nazism? We can’t all be armed fighters. Some of us will have to settle for smaller acts of resistance. As republicans expand their hate campaigns and shore them up in the legal systems of their states, anybody who murders a trans person, no matter how flagrantly, will be let off the hook – like Emmett Till’s killers. For that matter, expect all reproach or rebuke for killer cops to end. Many who have already been jailed will probably get pardoned. At least the white ones. Under a republican president, we may see concentration camps for trans people (we never stopped having them for immigrants), probably gay folk as well. The idea has already been floated, in Arizona I think? Jewish people will be far from safe. I have no idea what kind of crack fucks like Ben Shapiro are smoking, that they are willing propagandists for the nazi side.
That’s the obvious stuff, the stuff they’re already announcing as future plans. But what about the stuff that hasn’t been stated yet? That is historically part of the fascist agenda? Military conquest. Fascism fucks a country up, and to maintain the illusion it’s a reasonable way to do things, they need to sack resources from other countries. The easiest targets will be Cuba, Haiti, and other Caribbean countries. Might see an Axis-type alliance with Brazil if things go sideways there again. Ultimately Canada and Mexico would be occupied territory. Hopefully no nukes will be used, but given the expansion of first strike capabilities under Trump, it’s anybody’s guess. I’m guessing the Mexican resistance will do some righteous terrorism on our asses. Maybe the resistance under Vichy Canada will also impress?
Eventually US fascism will fall to whatever nonsense comes next. But consider this. Even in nazi germany, some people could live almost sorta kinda normal lives. Have love, have children, work, nurture, make art, etc. Bad things will happen on a terrible scale, but life will go on, and eventually the worst things will pass. Fight if you can, live if you can’t. Don’t give up hope, because, ultimately, anything can happen – including your own happily ever after.
As always, long live the fighters. Death to fascism.