In Italy there are two types of fascists: fascists and anti-fascists.
-Ennio Flaiano
Something very interesting happened today in Hamilton, Ontario. Hamilton Against Fascism protested a pro-Locke Street Patriot rally which included other groups such as Sons of Odin. This comes on the heels of a riotous attack on Locke Street by the so-called Ungovernables. As the “duel of the marches” approached, public accusations ran high, particularly on the part of the self-proclaimed anti-fascists.
But then, I couldn’t help but notice a familiar flag and symbol in the photos of the protest… the Revolutionary Communist Party. This kinda… horrified me.
Communism
What is obviously needed here is a short historical reminder: communism kills. Communism (and so, by association, Marxism and Marxism-Lenninism), based on the fine ideal that people should be equal and share equally, has resulted in a horrific loss of human life. To put it in perspective, the total death count at the hands of Communist Mao is 70 million alone. More people died under Communism than in World War II. (see Works Cited for links to stats.)
As someone who has lived in a Communist country for eight and a half years, welcoming a Communist party into our neighborhoods is alarming. Communism, in my experience, is linked to the inability to freely speak, the inability to freely use the internet, and the inability to protest in any real way against the government. It is linked, in my mind, to intrusive government surveillance, high social regulation, politically sanctioned/encouraged homophobia, and religious/ethnic persecution.
In Communist society, walking down the street waving slogans for alternative political groups just wouldn’t happen! The only protests that I saw enacted by the everyday folk within the Communist country in which I lived were the protests that had been encouraged by the government.
Mudslinging Puts Mud on Your Own Hand
As stated before, Hamilton Against Facism had a lot to say about the “alt-right”, “xenophobic” folks who were running the Patriot Rally. Perhaps they are true, perhaps they are not. What concerns me more is the fact that these self-same people seem totally OK with walking down the street hand-in-hand with people who are representing a reprehensible political movement. Hamilton Against Fascism’s claim that the Patriot Rally is insupportable because of its links to Nazism and racism (and etc) seems very ironic by its own obvious links to communist genocide. Somehow, these supposed “anti-fascists” are protecting society against crazy far-right people, while aligning with political immoderacy.
Does anyone else see the illogical quality of this moment?
Time to Reframe Fascism
And what is so anti-fascist about communism today anyways? Looking at this march, the irony becomes particularly clear when we have a closer look at fascism.
Fascism, according to English Oxford Living Dictionaries, is “a political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition.” Fascism is also often linked to far-right movements.
As Wikipedia noted: Fascism “is a form of radical authoritarian nationalism, characterized by dictatorial power, forcible suppression of opposition and control of industry and commerce, which came to prominence in early 20th-century Europe. The first fascist movements emerged in Italy during World War I before it spread to other European countries. Opposed to liberalism, Marxism and anarchism, fascism is usually placed on the far-right within the traditional left–right spectrum.”
In short, fascism is traditionally composed of…
- nationalism
- totalitarian/authoritarian regimes
- high control of industry/commerce
- race over individual
- forcible suppression of opposition
- far-right wing leanings
Although there are new fascist groups, like the neo-fascists and post-fascists, I wonder what would happen if we struck off #6 (“far-right wing”) and just looked at the other definitions as defining fascism. Suddenly modern day communist states could totally be defined as fascistic. Let’s call it…
Blanket Fascism. ‘Blanket’ because it widens the definition to a larger term. Within this new definition of fascism, quite a few political movements would find themselves a new ideological home. Our friends of the Revolutionary Communist Party, being linked to Communism, could be included, which would merely increase the irony of the moment.
Of course, some people will say, “HEY! You can’t arbitrarily change the definition of a word or a concept!” If any of those people happen to be culture studies/political left aficionados, all one needs to do is whisper the mantra of post-modernity: “There. Are. No. Meta-narratives.” By their own assertions, they can lay no claim to how and when a word is redefined or applied. Blanket fascism is born. Thank you, post-modernity.
Looking On
Looking on, what are we to do then? Well, before running out to hold signs, I would advise reading up on history. Get some knowledge under your belt. Visit a Communist country. Find out what living without any form of Western media is like. Think twice before bearing the hammer and the sickle. Western white folks have enough guilt before shouldering on the additional genocidal burdens of Communism.
Works Cited
Wikipedia’s Fascist Definition
Wikipedia Mass Killings under Communism Entry
Wikipedia Total Deaths WW2 Entry
The Killing Machine that is Marxism
Roger Scruton: ‘As the left surges back, Marxism’s bloody legacy is covered up’
Dappled-Things 
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