I do not want to be seen as defending fascists or being obscurantist but I regularly encounter normal people who literally never learned how to identify a fascist. To them, it vaguely means authoritarian and imperialistic and deploying it in conversations within an american context seems unnecessarily inflammatory. The average person has neither the time nor the inclination be as plugged into politics as we are. Words actually do mean things…just different things to different people.
THIS. I don’t install social networking apps on my phone (except for Voyager, somewhat recently, if that counts). I tend to find these conversations somewhat hard to follow, because it seems like different people use different versions of the same word… Or maybe the definitions evolve too quickly for those who don’t follow it very closely. Idk, I haven’t really narrowed it down yet.
But yeah… I honestly don’t really know how to identify a fascist. I think it has something to do with right-wing authoritarianism, but I’m not sure I’ve personally met any right-wing authoritarians, so I’m probably missing something.
And yes, I have attempted to look it up. The results were not very helpful. I assume it’s similar to looking up what Nazis were – quite different from how people use the word now.
Have you seen people’s algorithmic bubbles? The corporations that control these algorithms do not want to increase access to accurate and helpful information. Blaming millions of people instead of the systems that keep them oppressed is morally questionable, strategically ineffective, and psychologically isolating.
Well considering there’s plenty of documentaries, case studies, and articles written about how poisonous social media and algorithms are i dont have much sympathy for those who don’t look into it when we live in an age were information on EVERYTHING EVER WRITTEN DOWN is freely avaliable. Im not going to feel sorry because ppl rather look at cat videos and follow influencers instead of reading an article that tells them without a doubt how fucked up social media is.
It’s no different when ppl complained about tv being and idiot box. Just because YOU will watch the Bachelor or Real Housewives instead of Frontline or 60 minutes doesnt mean the medium makes everyone stupid. At a certain point it becomes YOUR responsibility to be an informed citizen.
If your heart is set on finding reasons to hate everyone else, you are always going to find them but successful political movements are built on solidarity and compassion.
Solidarity with who? The part of the country that voted in that facist who dont even recognize reality. I’m not going to feel sorry for a bunch of white folks and latinos who basically voted for him because brown and gay ppl were starting to get treated better. I have no compassion for bigots.
As for democrats and liberal white America they’ve constantly dropped the ball on solidarity with minorities. If its not obvious im a black dude. Black America has had PLENTY of compassion for others yet theres been practically no solidarity in return. I don’t hate everyone else. I just have absolutely zero faith in America doing the right thing. For fuck sake hippies we’re preaching peace, love, fighting for civil rights then moved to the suburbs and voted for Reagan.
I hear you but unless you already have a bullet proof political movement (the left does not), then you need to find it in your heart to look at the deplorables and find commonalities and build on them. This is the real benefit of class solidarity and economic essentialism. Our identitarian differences can be used against a movement to divide it, but we are all workers under capitalism. We all have bills. We all need to put food on the table. And yeah, securing labor rights, housing, and healthcare will not solve racism, sexism, and other bigotries BUT it will be much easier to advocate for social justice issues if people arent just fighting for survival.
The people you are angry with deserve your ire, but they are as much a product of their environments and circumstances as everyone else. Barring the rapture, they arent going anywhere so our political solutions need to include these people. There simply is not enough political power in everyone else to overturn their political relevance.
Why are you guys always telling this to brown ppl? Brown ppl didnt keep white ppl out of their unions, out of their neighborhoods, or denied them a good education. The main issue with class solidarity is trying to convince white ppl that brown and lgbtq ppl deserve the same standard of living as they do.
I do not want to be seen as defending fascists or being obscurantist but I regularly encounter normal people who literally never learned how to identify a fascist. To them, it vaguely means authoritarian and imperialistic and deploying it in conversations within an american context seems unnecessarily inflammatory. The average person has neither the time nor the inclination be as plugged into politics as we are. Words actually do mean things…just different things to different people.
THIS. I don’t install social networking apps on my phone (except for Voyager, somewhat recently, if that counts). I tend to find these conversations somewhat hard to follow, because it seems like different people use different versions of the same word… Or maybe the definitions evolve too quickly for those who don’t follow it very closely. Idk, I haven’t really narrowed it down yet.
But yeah… I honestly don’t really know how to identify a fascist. I think it has something to do with right-wing authoritarianism, but I’m not sure I’ve personally met any right-wing authoritarians, so I’m probably missing something.
And yes, I have attempted to look it up. The results were not very helpful. I assume it’s similar to looking up what Nazis were – quite different from how people use the word now.
Thank you for understanding “normal people.” 🙈
Ppl are constantly glued to their phones. They’re just lazy or have their head in the sand if they don’t pay attention to politics.
Have you seen people’s algorithmic bubbles? The corporations that control these algorithms do not want to increase access to accurate and helpful information. Blaming millions of people instead of the systems that keep them oppressed is morally questionable, strategically ineffective, and psychologically isolating.
Well considering there’s plenty of documentaries, case studies, and articles written about how poisonous social media and algorithms are i dont have much sympathy for those who don’t look into it when we live in an age were information on EVERYTHING EVER WRITTEN DOWN is freely avaliable. Im not going to feel sorry because ppl rather look at cat videos and follow influencers instead of reading an article that tells them without a doubt how fucked up social media is.
It’s no different when ppl complained about tv being and idiot box. Just because YOU will watch the Bachelor or Real Housewives instead of Frontline or 60 minutes doesnt mean the medium makes everyone stupid. At a certain point it becomes YOUR responsibility to be an informed citizen.
If your heart is set on finding reasons to hate everyone else, you are always going to find them but successful political movements are built on solidarity and compassion.
Solidarity with who? The part of the country that voted in that facist who dont even recognize reality. I’m not going to feel sorry for a bunch of white folks and latinos who basically voted for him because brown and gay ppl were starting to get treated better. I have no compassion for bigots.
As for democrats and liberal white America they’ve constantly dropped the ball on solidarity with minorities. If its not obvious im a black dude. Black America has had PLENTY of compassion for others yet theres been practically no solidarity in return. I don’t hate everyone else. I just have absolutely zero faith in America doing the right thing. For fuck sake hippies we’re preaching peace, love, fighting for civil rights then moved to the suburbs and voted for Reagan.
I hear you but unless you already have a bullet proof political movement (the left does not), then you need to find it in your heart to look at the deplorables and find commonalities and build on them. This is the real benefit of class solidarity and economic essentialism. Our identitarian differences can be used against a movement to divide it, but we are all workers under capitalism. We all have bills. We all need to put food on the table. And yeah, securing labor rights, housing, and healthcare will not solve racism, sexism, and other bigotries BUT it will be much easier to advocate for social justice issues if people arent just fighting for survival.
The people you are angry with deserve your ire, but they are as much a product of their environments and circumstances as everyone else. Barring the rapture, they arent going anywhere so our political solutions need to include these people. There simply is not enough political power in everyone else to overturn their political relevance.
Why are you guys always telling this to brown ppl? Brown ppl didnt keep white ppl out of their unions, out of their neighborhoods, or denied them a good education. The main issue with class solidarity is trying to convince white ppl that brown and lgbtq ppl deserve the same standard of living as they do.