Ah Matthew, Matthew ... I still remember when I was visiting the University of Bath and we, both young PhD students, were pleasently discussing politics. Paradoxically enough, you became a far-right phenomenon to study ... Life trajectories can be unpredictable as well as fantastic.
By the way, I have studied fascism for decades, and so did scholars like @ruthbenghiat.bsky.social , J. Stanley, @timothysnyder.bsky.social @andreamammone.bsky.social mone.bsky.social . Trump normalizers are NOt experts on fascism.
I share what I wrote in early 2021 for @ajenglish.bsky.social: "Rather than continuing to view their country as an exception", the US should look to history "to understand the perils of normalising fascistic and anti-democratic tendencies . American democracy is not too strong to fail". aje.io/k8z3g
my life 🙂
Meloni's party paradoxically claims that opposition groups have "problems" [ties? ambiguities?] with pro-pal terrorists. Once more Italy's far right forgets its own issues with antisemitism. They side with Israel & Jews - except if you are @opensocietybr.bsky.social @soros-md.bsky.social of course
Nostalgia & (neo)fascism in Italy. Ignazio La Russa, a founder of Meloni's party (FdI), president of the Senate, celebrates the neofascist Italian Social Movement (MSI). For him, the party logo, a flame recalling a fascist tradition, is a "symbol of love". A similar symbol is used by the FdI
I would not so easioy dismiss the influence & future impact of Trumpism
I share @finchelsteinf.bsky.social's view. We should stop approaching fascism as a European-only phenomenon. Italy was the first nation, but transnational connections & similarities are central to understand the past & fascism's contemporary permutations. U.S. exceptionalism simply makes no sense
As a historian of (neo)fascism, I believe that the antidemocratic turn in the US is clearly much more problematic than in other nations. As in interwar Europe, elites are enabling authoritarianism with fascist connotations
Meloni's party is paradoxically claiming that she contributed to the peace agreement in Gaza, while the Left contributed to riots in the demonstrations for peace
I am giving a public lecture on
"Transnational History and Right-wing Extremism: An Unfinished Journey" in Fribourg on 9 October
events.unifr.ch/transnationa...
After decades studying the far right, I can tell Trumpism is a new fascism. Similar old traits: sense of national decline & crisis, calls for national regeneration, fabricating enemies, scapegoting,
cult of leader, use of violence, (para)military force, demagogic propaganda.
Manfred Weber has been contributing to Europe's far-right turn for years and the EPP is a major vector in legitimising estremism.
www.euractiv.com/section/poli...
Italy 2025, many decades after the fall of the fascist dictatorship. The far-right government would like to ban history texts (for schools) rightly considering Meloni's party as "ultra right" and with a nostalgic approach on fascism. This is also done to scare publishers.
Ho scritto, a partire dalla lettera aperta di qualche giorno fa, sulla democrazia: che in molti danno per scontata o finanche "superabile", ma senza rendersi conto dei tempi bui che ci aspettano www.huffingtonpost.it/blog/2025/06...
Bravi!
Bravi!
I co-signed the open letter against fascist-type authoritarianisn published by The Guardian and many other media outlets across the globe. @theguardian.com
stopreturnfascism.org
www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...
My view on "trumpism in L.A.": racism, fabricating enemies & panic (raids, insurrection), rejecting basic rules, violence, militarisation, Mussolini-type propaganda, repressing dissent, silencing media, threatening political opponents = this is contemporary fascism possibly leading to dictatorship
This was and is the closest thing to FASCISM. But fascism to be successful needs some form of support from centrist - liberal elites
You are fully right. This is called FASCISM
Che schifo
Fascism
Once I stopped a talk and challenged him in front of students because he was ridiculously twisting role of the Italian left in postwar democracy. They are anti-left, so everyone else seems fine. But I was surprised to hear a guy telling me "well done, people do not usually challenge him". Pathetic
Far-right Meloni says "Freedom, democracy, and the centrality of the human being" are common values between the EU and USA. REALLY? Are you talking about Trump's far-right America? Threats? Deportations? No respect of legislations?
Shameless
Follia pura
This is the face of contemporary fascism
Preserving the culture by keeping Spritz at 4 euros, but Stalingrad is a bit too much 🙃
I hope to read soon this book on the reality of the far right @hopenothate.org.uk @joemulhall.bsky.social
