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Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future
From Yale professor and bestselling author of How Fascism Works, a searing confrontation with the authoritarian right’s efforts to annihilate public education, silence teachers, and use taxpayer money to undo a century of work to advance social justice action on race, gender, sexuality, and class.Combining historical research with an in-depth analysis of our modern political landscape, Erasing History issues a dire warning for America and the the worst fascist movements of humanity’s past began in schools; the same place so many of today’s right-wing political parties have trained their most vicious attacks. Donald Trump, Speaker Mike Johnson, Ron DeSantis, Vivek Ramaswamy, Vladimir Putin, Turkey’s Recip Erdogan, and Argentina’s Javier Milei have all reached the same if you want to roll back the clock on civil rights, equity, and inclusion, a great place to start is in our schools. Yale professor Jason Stanley exposes the true danger of the right’s tactics and traces their inspirations and funding back to some of the most dangerous ideas of human history. He shows that hearts and minds are won in our elementary schools, high schools, and universities—and that governments are currently ill-prepared to do the work of uprooting fascist policies being foisted upon our children through school boards, in courtrooms, and in the boardrooms of the companies trusted to train our teachers and create the materials they’ll share with their students. Deeply informed and urgently needed, this book is a vibrant call to action for lovers of democracy worldwide.
256 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2024
About the author
Jason F. Stanley
7 books349 followersJason Stanley is the Jacob Urowsky Professor of Philosophy at Yale University. He is the author of five books, including How Propaganda Works, winner of the Prose Award in Philosophy from the Association of American Publishers, and How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them, about which Citizens author Claudia Rankine says: “No single book is as relevant to the present moment.” Stanley serves on the board of the Prison Policy Initiative and writes frequently about propaganda, free speech, mass incarceration, democracy, and authoritarianism for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Boston Review, The Chronicle of Higher Education, and The Guardian.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 154 reviews
October 6, 2024
Democracy is on the ballot this year in the USA, and that's what I'm voting for.
October 23, 2024
“Whether we call them fascist or not, there is widespread agreement that the social and political movements we are witnessing today employ many of the same political tactics and rhetorical techniques that past fascist movements have — conjuring of violent vigilante mobs to threaten those who oppose them, stacking courts with loyalists to a leader or a party, directing hatred against immigrants and LGBTQ citizens, dismantling, reproductive rights, and using education to indoctrinate the young in a narrative of national greatness, rooted in a glorious past.”
“… fascist education works by strategically erasing accounts of history and current events that include a diversity of perspectives, narrowing the scope of what can be taught until students are presented with a single viewpoint, which is formulated specifically to justify and perpetuate a hierarchy value between groups. This narrowing is inconsistent with multi-racial democracy, antithetical to egalitarianism, and carries a possibility of conjuring mass violence.”
“Besides lying, those in power can ban concepts necessary for understanding the world we inhabit, such as structural racism, and institutions, such as the Gulag. They can ban concepts such as human rights or the equality of humankind. They can ban inquiry into the human caused climate change. Those lacking such essential concepts, or knowledge of essential facts, will respond differently to events. Unaware of the range of explanations and options, they can easily be manipulated.”
You would have to be intentionally blinkered to avoid recognizing the fascist-leaning elements in the current United States. Such elements are also alive and well in other parts of the world. This book helps identify the methods employed by fascists. Fascism thrives on ignorance and misinformation. Knowledge is power. This is a useful book. Although short, it is well researched and covers a lot of history. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Dion Graham. He did an excellent job as always.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
“… fascist education works by strategically erasing accounts of history and current events that include a diversity of perspectives, narrowing the scope of what can be taught until students are presented with a single viewpoint, which is formulated specifically to justify and perpetuate a hierarchy value between groups. This narrowing is inconsistent with multi-racial democracy, antithetical to egalitarianism, and carries a possibility of conjuring mass violence.”
“Besides lying, those in power can ban concepts necessary for understanding the world we inhabit, such as structural racism, and institutions, such as the Gulag. They can ban concepts such as human rights or the equality of humankind. They can ban inquiry into the human caused climate change. Those lacking such essential concepts, or knowledge of essential facts, will respond differently to events. Unaware of the range of explanations and options, they can easily be manipulated.”
You would have to be intentionally blinkered to avoid recognizing the fascist-leaning elements in the current United States. Such elements are also alive and well in other parts of the world. This book helps identify the methods employed by fascists. Fascism thrives on ignorance and misinformation. Knowledge is power. This is a useful book. Although short, it is well researched and covers a lot of history. I listened to the audiobook narrated by Dion Graham. He did an excellent job as always.
I received a free copy of this book from the publisher.
December 2, 2024
an informative and eerily timely read. the material is accessible and does a fantastic job at drawing parallels between states that have seen the rise of fa$cism, and how multiple perspectives in history is a corner stone of democracy.
July 22, 2024
Thoroughly researched, Jason Stanley presents a book with the possibility of an authoritarian regime in America. He shows how omitting critical parts of shared history in schools and universities is a strategy developed by leaders in the world who have been able to manipulate and control societies.
I thought: “What can he say that I don’t know already?” A lot. He educates the reader with what has happened in the world with countries such as China, India and Russia that are controlled by authoritarians. Some examples were noted with Hitler’s movement during WWII, McCarthy era in America and Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Stanley provided steps that authoritarian governments have used to change democracies with examples from Project 2025. There were classifications that were new to me such as Supremacist Nationalism. It was distressing to read: “America’s greatness stems from both its whiteness and its Christianity” knowing that my ancestor, Thomas Harris, nearly escaped after refusing to join the religious group at a placed called the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1600s. I learned more about Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán recent speech at a Dallas, TX political event attacking the idea of a mixed race. This book revealed historical accounts of the Native Americans and Black slavery that is an important part of our past.
The truth can be overwhelmingly depressing. This book entails a lot of information that can hit hard with reality that made me pause with my own questions. How do we fight back for public education and free-speech at universities? The author said American style liberal arts colleges do not exist in authoritarian countries.
Stanley was raised with ancestors who suffered greatly from Hitler and Stalin. He has spent years studying the effects of an authoritarian government and has presented a solid analysis of his findings in this book. He provides evidence of what’s happening in America and helps the reader to understand how we are moving in a direction of Christianity in southern schools and erasing parts of history that can later be manipulated.
The author has continued the work of his late father, Manfred Stanley, a Syracuse professor who taught about the meanings of democratic citizenship. Our world is changing with Artificial Intelligence and the massive amounts of internet news along with the bias news from the media. It’s important that we keep informed with the truthful past and present.
My thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of September 10, 2024.
I thought: “What can he say that I don’t know already?” A lot. He educates the reader with what has happened in the world with countries such as China, India and Russia that are controlled by authoritarians. Some examples were noted with Hitler’s movement during WWII, McCarthy era in America and Putin’s war in Ukraine.
Stanley provided steps that authoritarian governments have used to change democracies with examples from Project 2025. There were classifications that were new to me such as Supremacist Nationalism. It was distressing to read: “America’s greatness stems from both its whiteness and its Christianity” knowing that my ancestor, Thomas Harris, nearly escaped after refusing to join the religious group at a placed called the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 1600s. I learned more about Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orbán recent speech at a Dallas, TX political event attacking the idea of a mixed race. This book revealed historical accounts of the Native Americans and Black slavery that is an important part of our past.
The truth can be overwhelmingly depressing. This book entails a lot of information that can hit hard with reality that made me pause with my own questions. How do we fight back for public education and free-speech at universities? The author said American style liberal arts colleges do not exist in authoritarian countries.
Stanley was raised with ancestors who suffered greatly from Hitler and Stalin. He has spent years studying the effects of an authoritarian government and has presented a solid analysis of his findings in this book. He provides evidence of what’s happening in America and helps the reader to understand how we are moving in a direction of Christianity in southern schools and erasing parts of history that can later be manipulated.
The author has continued the work of his late father, Manfred Stanley, a Syracuse professor who taught about the meanings of democratic citizenship. Our world is changing with Artificial Intelligence and the massive amounts of internet news along with the bias news from the media. It’s important that we keep informed with the truthful past and present.
My thanks to Atria Books and NetGalley for allowing me to read an advanced copy of this book with an expected release date of September 10, 2024.
September 7, 2024
The book is Erasing History: How Fascists Rewrite the Past to Control the Future by Jason Stanley. The book is scheduled to be published on September 10.
I know that certain factions have insisted on a revised of history. It never made any sense to me. But that is probably because I am an American. The government could insist that something was true and maybe even force the education department to go along with it.
But in a democracy there would always be a those who voiced another opinion. And as Americans we would be free to decide who to believe. But what if we were not be free to disagree with the government version of history. There was only 1 acceptable version. And that was designed to make us believe what the government wants us to believe.
In Erasing History, Jason Stanley discusses how and why rewriting history is part of authoritarian and fascist governments method to gain power and eliminate democracy. This has happened in many counties around the world. So now I understand why they want us to believe their version of history and how they use it to enhance there power over the people,
It is happening in the United States and must be stopped if we would like to remain a free country.
Several years ago I reviewed a book called The Death of Democracy: Hitler’s Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic by Benjamin Carter Hett.
I was stuck in particular by the statement:
“among the Weimar Republic’s more fatal defects was that millions of its people deeply believed things that were verifiably untrue.”
This is true in America today. I closed my review by asking:
Is history repeating itself? It is not exactly the same but some things seem pretty close.
I know that certain factions have insisted on a revised of history. It never made any sense to me. But that is probably because I am an American. The government could insist that something was true and maybe even force the education department to go along with it.
But in a democracy there would always be a those who voiced another opinion. And as Americans we would be free to decide who to believe. But what if we were not be free to disagree with the government version of history. There was only 1 acceptable version. And that was designed to make us believe what the government wants us to believe.
In Erasing History, Jason Stanley discusses how and why rewriting history is part of authoritarian and fascist governments method to gain power and eliminate democracy. This has happened in many counties around the world. So now I understand why they want us to believe their version of history and how they use it to enhance there power over the people,
It is happening in the United States and must be stopped if we would like to remain a free country.
Several years ago I reviewed a book called The Death of Democracy: Hitler’s Rise to Power and the Downfall of the Weimar Republic by Benjamin Carter Hett.
I was stuck in particular by the statement:
“among the Weimar Republic’s more fatal defects was that millions of its people deeply believed things that were verifiably untrue.”
This is true in America today. I closed my review by asking:
Is history repeating itself? It is not exactly the same but some things seem pretty close.
February 2, 2025
kinda anxious ngl
January 30, 2025
I want to be reading smut and romance, but this shitty conservative government has me out here reading about fascism. I refuse to ignore what's happening in our country.
September 17, 2024
e-ARC provided by Atria Books and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review
ERASING HISTORY should occupy the same shelf space as books such as Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist and Ijeoma Oluo’s So You Want to Talk About Race. In terms of being an introduction to how fascism works and where we can see examples of fascism in our history and current events, it’s successful. I did wish, however, that it could have committed to a more discerning definition of fascism, as well as focused more on rising fascism in the US.
Jason Stanley is a professor specializing in philosophy of education, so he has the depth and breadth to write about this subject. In ERASING HISTORY, Stanley first gives us an overview of the reasons why fascists are threatened by a democratic, pluralistic view of history: because understanding that there are multiple perspectives on history is tantamount to admitting that different perspectives, and therefore different people, are valuable, and fascism is all about controlling the narrative for the powerful to maintain their influence.
Things that made me think from reading ERASING HISTORY include:
- Settler colonialism using the erasure of indigenous history and culture to justify implanting their superior culture on an “unclaimed” land;
- “Civilization savagism” as the act of rendering the local population deserving of being colonized or ruled by the colonizing nation’s universally superior cultural norms;
- The need for “supremacist nationalism” to justify their manifest superiority by portraying themselves in only a good, pure, and innocent light, e.g. the way in which US conservatives have tried to rewrite the US’ history with slavery and the actions of the Ku Klux Klan as being beneficial to Black people;
- The five themes of fascist education being national greatness, national purity, national innocence, strict gender roles, and vilification of the left;
- The susceptibility of populations educated with myths of national supremacy to the Great Replacement Theory (or the fear that their position of influence in their society will be replaced by invading foreign stains), because their nationhood is predicated on the belief that they are superior to others.
Stanley pulls on historical examples from Nazi Germany, India, Hungary, Russia, and more to support his arguments. All of this is fascinating, but I found myself wishing he would stick more to analyzing historical and current US events, as ERASING HISTORY inadvertently gives off the impression that “Well, the US may be bad in some ways, but at least we’re not Nazi Germany!” which is not really the message that we need right now.
Indeed, one could argue that Stanley is so quick to assign the label of fascism to contemporary societies that it starts to lose its impact. In taking a broader view in his analysis, the book could end up confusing or misleading readers into thinking that fascism is less a threat to the US than it really is, because he switches from talking about non-US examples of fascism to US examples in a way that sort of obfuscates the seriousness of the rise of fascism in the US.
Finally, I wasn’t that impressed that, for someone so quick to throw out the labels of fascism and genocide (he calls what Russia is doing to Ukrainians a genocide, or at least a “cultural genocide”), Stanley delicately yet noticeably avoids labeling Israel’s actions against Palestinians as a genocide. Every time Israel is brought up as an example, the book is careful to preface it by saying that Israel acted in response to a “horrific” terrorist attack by Hamas, whereas Israel’s actions are only “arguably genocidal”. Interesting because on his social media he DOES call a genocide a genocide, but limitations were placed on this book? Shrug.
As far as literature on fascism is concerned, I’m not sure if ERASING HISTORY breaks any new ground, but it is a good summary of the concept for those who are, perhaps, just beginning to un-learn the things that we had been taught. A more specific focus on the US and more actionable measures that we can take against fascism would have made it a stronger read for me.
ERASING HISTORY should occupy the same shelf space as books such as Ibram X. Kendi’s How to Be an Antiracist and Ijeoma Oluo’s So You Want to Talk About Race. In terms of being an introduction to how fascism works and where we can see examples of fascism in our history and current events, it’s successful. I did wish, however, that it could have committed to a more discerning definition of fascism, as well as focused more on rising fascism in the US.
Jason Stanley is a professor specializing in philosophy of education, so he has the depth and breadth to write about this subject. In ERASING HISTORY, Stanley first gives us an overview of the reasons why fascists are threatened by a democratic, pluralistic view of history: because understanding that there are multiple perspectives on history is tantamount to admitting that different perspectives, and therefore different people, are valuable, and fascism is all about controlling the narrative for the powerful to maintain their influence.
Things that made me think from reading ERASING HISTORY include:
- Settler colonialism using the erasure of indigenous history and culture to justify implanting their superior culture on an “unclaimed” land;
- “Civilization savagism” as the act of rendering the local population deserving of being colonized or ruled by the colonizing nation’s universally superior cultural norms;
- The need for “supremacist nationalism” to justify their manifest superiority by portraying themselves in only a good, pure, and innocent light, e.g. the way in which US conservatives have tried to rewrite the US’ history with slavery and the actions of the Ku Klux Klan as being beneficial to Black people;
- The five themes of fascist education being national greatness, national purity, national innocence, strict gender roles, and vilification of the left;
- The susceptibility of populations educated with myths of national supremacy to the Great Replacement Theory (or the fear that their position of influence in their society will be replaced by invading foreign stains), because their nationhood is predicated on the belief that they are superior to others.
Stanley pulls on historical examples from Nazi Germany, India, Hungary, Russia, and more to support his arguments. All of this is fascinating, but I found myself wishing he would stick more to analyzing historical and current US events, as ERASING HISTORY inadvertently gives off the impression that “Well, the US may be bad in some ways, but at least we’re not Nazi Germany!” which is not really the message that we need right now.
Indeed, one could argue that Stanley is so quick to assign the label of fascism to contemporary societies that it starts to lose its impact. In taking a broader view in his analysis, the book could end up confusing or misleading readers into thinking that fascism is less a threat to the US than it really is, because he switches from talking about non-US examples of fascism to US examples in a way that sort of obfuscates the seriousness of the rise of fascism in the US.
Finally, I wasn’t that impressed that, for someone so quick to throw out the labels of fascism and genocide (he calls what Russia is doing to Ukrainians a genocide, or at least a “cultural genocide”), Stanley delicately yet noticeably avoids labeling Israel’s actions against Palestinians as a genocide. Every time Israel is brought up as an example, the book is careful to preface it by saying that Israel acted in response to a “horrific” terrorist attack by Hamas, whereas Israel’s actions are only “arguably genocidal”. Interesting because on his social media he DOES call a genocide a genocide, but limitations were placed on this book? Shrug.
As far as literature on fascism is concerned, I’m not sure if ERASING HISTORY breaks any new ground, but it is a good summary of the concept for those who are, perhaps, just beginning to un-learn the things that we had been taught. A more specific focus on the US and more actionable measures that we can take against fascism would have made it a stronger read for me.
September 17, 2024
an incredible weirdo
honstly he gets more and more unspooled with every book
I have this theory that he is going to write in his next book that Biden is secretly in control of the world's Oxygen Supply like Blofeld, and that his plan is to throw the election on purpose, and let Trump win, because secretly Biden and Trump are working together, and Trump will pass all of the woke agenda, terrifying the world.
.............
Finally a comfortable low oxygen mask for voting
now available in 24% 28% and 35% concentrations
Mix-O-Masks are packed 12 in a carton of one concentration.
Skull Systems Incorporated Billboard
America 2025
............
YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST FOLKS
Get your message across, screams the friendly neighbourhood fascist next to me, watching me writhe with ill-disguised excitement. I think I see a stain on his crotch but it might just be my eyeballs puking. In any case, the term 'bowel movement' attains symphonic intensity. I am drawn and quartered like some Kraft cheese that got left out on the moon too long.
SCRIBE JFS
...........
To imagine Donald Trump in his prime, divering himself by feeding goldfish into a stapling machine or putting firecrackers into a paraplegic's colostomy bag, made you feel that whatever gene pool this crafty cretin derived from only had a deep, dark end
SCRIBE JFS
............
The Amazing Stanley or the Amazing Chriswell?
We think of cannibalism as a thing of the past practiced only in the wildest jungles far from our civilized way of life. However even today cannibalism is practiced in our own society but acts of such savagery are kept hidden from the public. I predict an outburst of Cannibalism that will terrorize the population of one of the industrial cities in the state of Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh!
Our entire nation is dotted with experimental laboratories which are kept under constant guard and operated in complete secrecy. Little is known about these many plants and laboratories for the experiments they conduct would startle and shock the entire world. Extreme precautions must be taken for the safety of every employee but quite often there are accidents which cannot be avoided. Naturally these accidents are hushed for word of them would violate the secrecy which is so essential. However I predict one terrible accident which will become known for it will be impossible to keep it within the confines of the walled and carefully guarded laboratory. I predict that one of the largest experimental laboratories in Pennsylvania will have a sudden release of gas from a large chamber which will be swept through every sector of the installation. I predict that these fumes will enter the ventilation system carrying to every corridor of the laboratory and will effect thousands of employees. This gas will have been developed by a scientist who is working on nerve gases that affect man's mentality. This unfortunate scientist will be the victim of a fatal heart attack and his sudden collapse will permit the dangerous fumes to be released and swept through the entire laboratory. The effects of this gas will be ghastly for it will create in man a desire for raw flesh and it will be an uncontrollable hunger and lust. Men employed in the laboratory will seek to quell their appetites and the acts they commit within the confines of these walls cannot be told. I predict many of them will satisfy unspeakable urges there but others will leave the laboratory and search elsewhere to appease their maddened crazed hunger. No one outside the laboratory will know what happened behind its guarded walls and the public will receive no warning until it is too late. I predict that over one thousand flesh mad and blood crazed men will wander through the streets suddenly attacking unsuspecting victims, I predict that many of these animal like men will be captured but others will seek hiding places and elude the authorities. Countless numbers of men, women and children will be kidnapped suddenly disappearing and will never be found. The state of Pennsylvania will go all out in an effort to stop this horrible mass murder and will begin the greatest man hunt the country has ever known. I predict that hundreds of terrorists will be found and imprisoned but they will have had a chance to bring death to a great many innocent victims. Each and every day more bodies will be found. Their flesh torn from their bones in a hungry manner. Many others will be found stripped of their clothing, bound and gagged in cellars and attics meeting a most horrible and foul death. I predict that the wife of a government official fortunately will be rescued and she will tell the most horrifying tale ever to be released to the public. She will relate in detail the actions of three crazed men who abducted her and threw her into a cellar with many others, all of whom were tied and gagged and half-eaten. This poor woman will reveal that the clothing was ripped off her body and she was pushed into a corner with several male victims who were also stripped. She will tell how one by one the helpless captives were brought to the center of the cellar and while still alive they were attacked by three mad men who tore the flesh from their writhing and tormented bodies. I predict that this woman's story will be anonymously recorded and it will later be found that she is the wife of the Governor of Pennsylvania. I predict the citizenry of Pennsylvania will demand added police and military protection and a curfew will be enforced. I predict no one will be permitted to enter the streets at night and during the day everyone will be ordered to travel in pairs. However at night husbands will return home to find their wives and children missing. Clerks will disappear from shops and empty trucks will be found on road ways. People will refuse to leave their homes. Business will shut down and a state of terror will reign. Policemen will disappear from their corners and post office employees will suddenly be gone. I predict that many innocent men will be accused of cannibalism and dragged away by angry mobs and put to death. I predict that the number of missing people will be frightfully high but many will later be found unharmed. This horrible orgy will continue for several weeks until the last crazed man is found and only then will the shocked and terrorized city return to normal. Mass mournings will be held for the victims. A smile will be unknown. The fate of this city of Pittsburgh, Penn., will never be forgotten and I predict that added safety measures will be taken in all chemical laboratories to make certain there is no similar accident.
YOU BE THE JUDGE
..........
Publishers Weekly
This warns of an imminent fascist future but doesn’t delve far enough into how to stop it.
honstly he gets more and more unspooled with every book
I have this theory that he is going to write in his next book that Biden is secretly in control of the world's Oxygen Supply like Blofeld, and that his plan is to throw the election on purpose, and let Trump win, because secretly Biden and Trump are working together, and Trump will pass all of the woke agenda, terrifying the world.
.............
Finally a comfortable low oxygen mask for voting
now available in 24% 28% and 35% concentrations
Mix-O-Masks are packed 12 in a carton of one concentration.
Skull Systems Incorporated Billboard
America 2025
............
YOU HEARD IT HERE FIRST FOLKS
Get your message across, screams the friendly neighbourhood fascist next to me, watching me writhe with ill-disguised excitement. I think I see a stain on his crotch but it might just be my eyeballs puking. In any case, the term 'bowel movement' attains symphonic intensity. I am drawn and quartered like some Kraft cheese that got left out on the moon too long.
SCRIBE JFS
...........
To imagine Donald Trump in his prime, divering himself by feeding goldfish into a stapling machine or putting firecrackers into a paraplegic's colostomy bag, made you feel that whatever gene pool this crafty cretin derived from only had a deep, dark end
SCRIBE JFS
............
The Amazing Stanley or the Amazing Chriswell?
We think of cannibalism as a thing of the past practiced only in the wildest jungles far from our civilized way of life. However even today cannibalism is practiced in our own society but acts of such savagery are kept hidden from the public. I predict an outburst of Cannibalism that will terrorize the population of one of the industrial cities in the state of Pennsylvania - Pittsburgh!
Our entire nation is dotted with experimental laboratories which are kept under constant guard and operated in complete secrecy. Little is known about these many plants and laboratories for the experiments they conduct would startle and shock the entire world. Extreme precautions must be taken for the safety of every employee but quite often there are accidents which cannot be avoided. Naturally these accidents are hushed for word of them would violate the secrecy which is so essential. However I predict one terrible accident which will become known for it will be impossible to keep it within the confines of the walled and carefully guarded laboratory. I predict that one of the largest experimental laboratories in Pennsylvania will have a sudden release of gas from a large chamber which will be swept through every sector of the installation. I predict that these fumes will enter the ventilation system carrying to every corridor of the laboratory and will effect thousands of employees. This gas will have been developed by a scientist who is working on nerve gases that affect man's mentality. This unfortunate scientist will be the victim of a fatal heart attack and his sudden collapse will permit the dangerous fumes to be released and swept through the entire laboratory. The effects of this gas will be ghastly for it will create in man a desire for raw flesh and it will be an uncontrollable hunger and lust. Men employed in the laboratory will seek to quell their appetites and the acts they commit within the confines of these walls cannot be told. I predict many of them will satisfy unspeakable urges there but others will leave the laboratory and search elsewhere to appease their maddened crazed hunger. No one outside the laboratory will know what happened behind its guarded walls and the public will receive no warning until it is too late. I predict that over one thousand flesh mad and blood crazed men will wander through the streets suddenly attacking unsuspecting victims, I predict that many of these animal like men will be captured but others will seek hiding places and elude the authorities. Countless numbers of men, women and children will be kidnapped suddenly disappearing and will never be found. The state of Pennsylvania will go all out in an effort to stop this horrible mass murder and will begin the greatest man hunt the country has ever known. I predict that hundreds of terrorists will be found and imprisoned but they will have had a chance to bring death to a great many innocent victims. Each and every day more bodies will be found. Their flesh torn from their bones in a hungry manner. Many others will be found stripped of their clothing, bound and gagged in cellars and attics meeting a most horrible and foul death. I predict that the wife of a government official fortunately will be rescued and she will tell the most horrifying tale ever to be released to the public. She will relate in detail the actions of three crazed men who abducted her and threw her into a cellar with many others, all of whom were tied and gagged and half-eaten. This poor woman will reveal that the clothing was ripped off her body and she was pushed into a corner with several male victims who were also stripped. She will tell how one by one the helpless captives were brought to the center of the cellar and while still alive they were attacked by three mad men who tore the flesh from their writhing and tormented bodies. I predict that this woman's story will be anonymously recorded and it will later be found that she is the wife of the Governor of Pennsylvania. I predict the citizenry of Pennsylvania will demand added police and military protection and a curfew will be enforced. I predict no one will be permitted to enter the streets at night and during the day everyone will be ordered to travel in pairs. However at night husbands will return home to find their wives and children missing. Clerks will disappear from shops and empty trucks will be found on road ways. People will refuse to leave their homes. Business will shut down and a state of terror will reign. Policemen will disappear from their corners and post office employees will suddenly be gone. I predict that many innocent men will be accused of cannibalism and dragged away by angry mobs and put to death. I predict that the number of missing people will be frightfully high but many will later be found unharmed. This horrible orgy will continue for several weeks until the last crazed man is found and only then will the shocked and terrorized city return to normal. Mass mournings will be held for the victims. A smile will be unknown. The fate of this city of Pittsburgh, Penn., will never be forgotten and I predict that added safety measures will be taken in all chemical laboratories to make certain there is no similar accident.
YOU BE THE JUDGE
..........
Publishers Weekly
This warns of an imminent fascist future but doesn’t delve far enough into how to stop it.
October 11, 2024
If you’re going to write about the fight for Palestine’s liberation the least you can do is denounce Israel’s horrible regime and be clear about Palestinian oppression. The author kept talking about October 7 as if that was the beginning of this genocide. Yes, he talks about the Nakba but emphasizes october 7 so many times that he makes it seem as if that is the reason for the current situation in that region… be fr Jason
October 7, 2024
A fast paced and engaging crash course on how far right (and you could give it to any political or ideological movement that goes too far to a extreme) politics erase critical parts of history to benefit themselves and create a very narrow view of the truth, making people more suceptible to believe and elect them, with the charade of fair democracy. As Jason Stanley says, there are five major themes in fascist education:
-National greatness
-National purity
-National innocence
-Strict gender roles
-Vilification of the left
Be honest, how many goddamn podcast have you heard with these five items, or at least some of them, repeated again and again?
It gives different examples in history like Nazi Germany, England's erasure of the Kikuyu in Kenya, the Gulags, and put them into perspective with Donald Trump and Maga, and Putin. I had a little trouble with some concepts or frases sometimes, they appeared very lefty ivy league American college to me, but it wasn't intrusive to the argument, or it wouldn't even be an argument if it was. But it gives a clear understanding of what fascists movements do to education and why. It's scary, and it's happening right now all over the world, and we are to blame when we elect them. Just look at my dear Argentina and now Germany, and we'll see what happens in the USA.
In other words, if there is no state to support citizens in need, they will be obliged to fall back on their families and religious communities for support. This has the effect of reinforcing traditional social values, since it puts these families and communities in a position to condition their support on the rejection of certain beliefs, identities, or ways of life that they may find objectionable. A robust system of public goods gives citizens the necessary support structures to make their own choices - and to take full advantage of democracy's freedoms. And this is exactly why social conservatives and libertarians alike find democratic forms of education so threatening.
-National greatness
-National purity
-National innocence
-Strict gender roles
-Vilification of the left
Be honest, how many goddamn podcast have you heard with these five items, or at least some of them, repeated again and again?
It gives different examples in history like Nazi Germany, England's erasure of the Kikuyu in Kenya, the Gulags, and put them into perspective with Donald Trump and Maga, and Putin. I had a little trouble with some concepts or frases sometimes, they appeared very lefty ivy league American college to me, but it wasn't intrusive to the argument, or it wouldn't even be an argument if it was. But it gives a clear understanding of what fascists movements do to education and why. It's scary, and it's happening right now all over the world, and we are to blame when we elect them. Just look at my dear Argentina and now Germany, and we'll see what happens in the USA.
In other words, if there is no state to support citizens in need, they will be obliged to fall back on their families and religious communities for support. This has the effect of reinforcing traditional social values, since it puts these families and communities in a position to condition their support on the rejection of certain beliefs, identities, or ways of life that they may find objectionable. A robust system of public goods gives citizens the necessary support structures to make their own choices - and to take full advantage of democracy's freedoms. And this is exactly why social conservatives and libertarians alike find democratic forms of education so threatening.
January 11, 2025
Disappointingly for a book about how history and written narratives can support or reinforce genocidal ideas, this book is surprisingly unable to name the genocide in Palestine or to do anything other than note that Israel’s actions were “arguably genocidal” without actually taking a stance. Somehow manages to spread the myth that there is a war, not a genocide, taking place and that the conflict began on Oct 7 2023, while also mentioning the Nakba (although it states that this is the term the Palestinians use and it is originally referred to as “Israel’s war of independence.” Not bad on a craft level, fairly interesting, and containing a lot of useful information that I enjoyed, but correctly labeling all the other genocides mentioned in the book other than the one occurring in Palestine really dulled my enjoyment of the book. Had it not literally been a book about fascism and history with a big focus on education and reading materials I would’ve had more grace for it, but the fact that it was such an integral part of of the content led to me giving it a 2 instead of a 3- Had it properly named the genocide, I probably would’ve given it a 4.
November 16, 2024
Essential, accessible, informative, galvanizing. I can't wait to read more of his work.
February 7, 2025
Engaging. Enjoyed his inclusion of labor history in critical studies able to challenge American exceptionalism (ch. 7). Some fun tangents on the intellectual history side.
February 2, 2025
“even in these grim times for democracy, there remains ample room for hope.”
essential reading. speaks on the importance of education (!!!) and its role in the creation of a fascist society
essential reading. speaks on the importance of education (!!!) and its role in the creation of a fascist society
November 26, 2024
History always repeats itself…..this book was frightening to say the least
October 16, 2024
This is one of the worst ones I've read in a while. Stanley is so myopic he's a character in the Odyssey.
He's not all wrong about the things he says and there were one or two facts I appreciated but he only looked at the issue from one side. Of course, it those were his parameters it would be an alright nook. But he moves on from describing just fascism and contends that anyone who doesn't take a liberal arts approach to education is a fascist. Moreover, he refuses to admit that anyone else ever uses the education system to force their message on youths. In fact he categorically denies it. I don't take a side here but if you think one side is pure evil and one side is angelic in their altruism, you're not really thinking critically.
It's a blindly one sided view and it drifts from facts and figures to wild allegations and baseless accusations. Just a testament to a non-scientific approach politics and political thinking.
Do not bother with this, you won't learn anything and unless you ascribe exactly to Stanley's worldview, you'll be bored and annoyed.
He's not all wrong about the things he says and there were one or two facts I appreciated but he only looked at the issue from one side. Of course, it those were his parameters it would be an alright nook. But he moves on from describing just fascism and contends that anyone who doesn't take a liberal arts approach to education is a fascist. Moreover, he refuses to admit that anyone else ever uses the education system to force their message on youths. In fact he categorically denies it. I don't take a side here but if you think one side is pure evil and one side is angelic in their altruism, you're not really thinking critically.
It's a blindly one sided view and it drifts from facts and figures to wild allegations and baseless accusations. Just a testament to a non-scientific approach politics and political thinking.
Do not bother with this, you won't learn anything and unless you ascribe exactly to Stanley's worldview, you'll be bored and annoyed.
December 25, 2024
The process of growing up is the transition from seeing the world as black and white, to seeing it as many shades of grey. Yet, one of the main themes of Fascism is to reverse this process so that the world remains black and white, e.g., there must be only one way to define marriage, there must be only one way for women to realize her value, the founders of are country must all be saints, the history of the country must all be innocent and pure, etc.
But the world is not black and white; history is not black and white. Fascism inevitably leads to suffering because it forces an unnatural setting on humanity. It stifles, never liberates.
Unfortunately, we are always drawn towards a black-and-white definition of the world, like gravity, because it is simple to understand and easy to shield oneself from uncomfortable truths. That's why education is so crucial to help us climb out the gravity well. It allows us to realize that a world of many shades of grey is nothing to be afraid of, and some of us might be so enlightened that instead of facing many shades of grey, we actually see a rainbow.
But how can those in power maintain power if the people are enlightened? Adults who can see the world as many shades of grey, let alone those seeing a rainbow, are much more difficult to control than children who only cherish black and white. Thus, all adults must be reduced to children, which is essentially the goal of education under Fascism. Citizens must remain children. They will be taught black-and-white stories, fed endless entertainment, and conditioned to have the attention span of a goldfish. They don't need to think (those in power will think for them); all they need to do is to remain intellectually numb, chant slogans when asked, and, if there still exists an election, be a single-issue voter.
The right wing wants to avoid teaching racism in schools because, according to them, it will make white kids feel ashamed of their ancestors. Well, maybe the right wing nuts only have the emotion capacity of a spoon, but most people are capable of being both ashamed and proud of their ancestors. Holding both opinions at the same time and knowing which history to be ashamed of (so we do not repeat it) and which to be proud of (so we can maintain it) is the hallmark of growing up. But the right wing does not want the kids to grow up, they want to shield them from "dangerous materials" like an overprotective parent. Ya, there you have it, you right wing alpha males, you are all just mama's boys.
Some quotes that resonate with me.
-- p78: All fascist regimes follow the same playbook, with slight regional varieties.
-- p110: This reminds me so much of my own upbringing in China. I rarely questioned this narrative back then, because I was part of the dominant race. The minorities were so isolated from us that the only news I had ever heard from them was via the official mouth pieces. Were they suffering? Were their rights being restricted? Were they free to express their discontent? I never knew. Is this what America is sliding towards, a society where the dominant race knows and cares little about the minorities not because of their apathy but because they simply have no idea?
-- p120: If your policy is bad for the regular folks, how do you still win their votes? Easy, just distract them. Bring the fight away from your policy and towards anti-elitism. In practice, you will see candidates wear a hardhat, pull a horn on a semi, or even flip a burger in McDonalds, while claiming that they are a working-class billionaire (LOL, and people believe it!) and will drain the swamp.
-- p131: A strong public domain ensures the ethos of "Live, and let live".
-- p133: Both type of education is in full swing now. Democracy is so fragile.
But the world is not black and white; history is not black and white. Fascism inevitably leads to suffering because it forces an unnatural setting on humanity. It stifles, never liberates.
Unfortunately, we are always drawn towards a black-and-white definition of the world, like gravity, because it is simple to understand and easy to shield oneself from uncomfortable truths. That's why education is so crucial to help us climb out the gravity well. It allows us to realize that a world of many shades of grey is nothing to be afraid of, and some of us might be so enlightened that instead of facing many shades of grey, we actually see a rainbow.
But how can those in power maintain power if the people are enlightened? Adults who can see the world as many shades of grey, let alone those seeing a rainbow, are much more difficult to control than children who only cherish black and white. Thus, all adults must be reduced to children, which is essentially the goal of education under Fascism. Citizens must remain children. They will be taught black-and-white stories, fed endless entertainment, and conditioned to have the attention span of a goldfish. They don't need to think (those in power will think for them); all they need to do is to remain intellectually numb, chant slogans when asked, and, if there still exists an election, be a single-issue voter.
The right wing wants to avoid teaching racism in schools because, according to them, it will make white kids feel ashamed of their ancestors. Well, maybe the right wing nuts only have the emotion capacity of a spoon, but most people are capable of being both ashamed and proud of their ancestors. Holding both opinions at the same time and knowing which history to be ashamed of (so we do not repeat it) and which to be proud of (so we can maintain it) is the hallmark of growing up. But the right wing does not want the kids to grow up, they want to shield them from "dangerous materials" like an overprotective parent. Ya, there you have it, you right wing alpha males, you are all just mama's boys.
Some quotes that resonate with me.
...there are five major theme of fascist education
1. National greatness
2. National purity
3. National innocence
4. Stric gender roles
5. Vilification of the left
-- p78: All fascist regimes follow the same playbook, with slight regional varieties.
When a country's education system represents that country as exceptional in the world, standing above all nations in its greatness and innocence, it makes that country susceptible to the violent authoritarian ideology of fascism.
-- p110: This reminds me so much of my own upbringing in China. I rarely questioned this narrative back then, because I was part of the dominant race. The minorities were so isolated from us that the only news I had ever heard from them was via the official mouth pieces. Were they suffering? Were their rights being restricted? Were they free to express their discontent? I never knew. Is this what America is sliding towards, a society where the dominant race knows and cares little about the minorities not because of their apathy but because they simply have no idea?
For many of them, and especially those whose hostility to the economic interests of ordinary people prevents them from winning popularity on the merits of their ideas, a politics of fake anti-elitism is the surest path to achieving the power they crave.
-- p120: If your policy is bad for the regular folks, how do you still win their votes? Easy, just distract them. Bring the fight away from your policy and towards anti-elitism. In practice, you will see candidates wear a hardhat, pull a horn on a semi, or even flip a burger in McDonalds, while claiming that they are a working-class billionaire (LOL, and people believe it!) and will drain the swamp.
In other words, if there is no state to support citizens in need, they will be obliged to fall back on their families and religious communities for support. This has the effect of reinforcing traditional social values, since it puts these families and communities in a position to condition their support on the rejection of certain beliefs, identities, or ways of life that they may find objectionable.
-- p131: A strong public domain ensures the ethos of "Live, and let live".
There are multiple ways to attack democracy through the education system. Fascist education is education for mobilization. ... it prepares citizens for violence... Anti-education, by contrast, is education for demobilization. ... anti-education renders a population apathetic -- leaving the task of running the country to others, be they autocrats, plutocrats, or theocrats.
-- p133: Both type of education is in full swing now. Democracy is so fragile.
January 30, 2025
Good read, not sure it's particularly encouraging at the moment. There's an uncomfortable amount of overlap demonstrated between the current administration and fascist regimes of the past. There is certainly a movement to cast doubt on the educational system, advocating for a white-washing of history (pun intended) and decrying all major institutions of propogators of "Marxism and CRT." There's a very obvious effort to take control of the educational system in America and dictate what can and cannot be taught, especially in states like Florida. Fascist regimes fear democracy and thrive on "otherizing" specific groups for fear and hatred- immigrants, LGBTQ community, the trans community- and trying to implement a nationalistic fervor. Anti-intellectualism is in the air, part of a concerted effort to seize and retain control. Stanley ends with a focus on prioritizing education, specifically what he terms "civic compassion," which essentially amounts to growing our empathy- taking time to listen to other people and to learn to see the world through their eyes, to understand the power structures and privilege that is always at play in the world and in our relationships. Authoritarianism thrives on ignorance, misinformation, and confusion. If we are to resist fascism, then we must focus on knowing and understanding the world around us and the people who inhabit it.
November 24, 2024
This is a book by the Yale philosophy professor who wrote “How Fascism Works”. It is close to a sequel or even a direct continuation that covers the importance for fascists of controlling the past so that a population faces no competition from past events or experiences that contend with the warped view of the world propounded by the fascist regime. By controlling the past, the regime works to engineer it preferred future and short circuit any opposition. Readers of 1984 will feel right at home.
Most of this material is well known, especially from its basis in the histories of fascist Italy or the Third Reich, especially during the gleichschaltung period when the Nazi regime aligned and coordinated the activities of other social and educational activities. What makes Professor Stanley’s arguments so persuasive and sharp comes from his use of current exemplars, such as in Hungary, Poland, or Russia (with Putin generally but especially with the Ukrainian wars).
The book also makes its nearly impossible to ignore the lurch towards fascism with the Republican Party. It is required reading for the post-election transition, as well as for the turmoil in universities attendant to both the Israeli-Hamas war and the potential widening of the war. The assaults on elite US universities by Republicans during this period are a continuation of the story. Everyone troubled by current events, such as recently in the Florida university system, should read this book.
Most of this material is well known, especially from its basis in the histories of fascist Italy or the Third Reich, especially during the gleichschaltung period when the Nazi regime aligned and coordinated the activities of other social and educational activities. What makes Professor Stanley’s arguments so persuasive and sharp comes from his use of current exemplars, such as in Hungary, Poland, or Russia (with Putin generally but especially with the Ukrainian wars).
The book also makes its nearly impossible to ignore the lurch towards fascism with the Republican Party. It is required reading for the post-election transition, as well as for the turmoil in universities attendant to both the Israeli-Hamas war and the potential widening of the war. The assaults on elite US universities by Republicans during this period are a continuation of the story. Everyone troubled by current events, such as recently in the Florida university system, should read this book.
January 8, 2025
This is a short but eye-opening read about the ways fascist governments commandeer education, particularly education that responsibly teaches the past, and attempts to hide the more sordid aspects in favor of uncritical patriotism and the celebration of exceptionalism. Stanley draws parallels between contemporary governments in Turkey, Russia, India, the U.S., and Argentina, as well as historical cases of fascist takeover, including Nazi Germany, Stalin's Russia, and Mussolini's Italy. The evidence is terrifying and fills me with rage. As an educator in the U.S., I am already seeing the effects of fascist legislation at the university level: attacks on academic freedom and classroom instruction, the banning of Critical Race Theory (which I'm convinced the GOP doesn't even understand or know anything about), and Texas law SB 17 which bans Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives statewide. But it's not just teachers and admin who are affected. It's the students who are most affected by this hate. With these fascist endeavors, so many students are feeling vulnerable and scared. And it's made them hesitant to speak up in class, and therefore hesitant to learn. There's also an epidemic of apathy among the younger generations regarding their education. If the government attacks higher education, there's this sense that educators are untrustworthy or evil or that higher education is worthless. The narratives of teachers brainwashing their students (what a joke) make many students refuse to think critically for themselves. And truthfully, if we could brainwash our students, we'd make them read the syllabus, because they don't even do that.
"Virtually every advancement that society has made toward greater equality began with educators. Black teachers in the Jim Crow era were a bulwark against segregationist propaganda, training the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement and giving Black citizens tools, in the words of Harvard historian Jarvis Givens, 'to imagine a world outside the confines of Jim Crow.' This is why fascists attack teachers. Democratic education enhances human flourishing, supports human dignity, and shapes children into critical, thoughtful, generous, empathetic citizens." (pp. 23-24)
Anyway, I found this book insightful but also scary. The comparisons between current U.S. politics and Nazi Germany were particularly horrifying. I hope Trump is imprisoned and somehow, some way, this country gets off the train to fascism.
"Virtually every advancement that society has made toward greater equality began with educators. Black teachers in the Jim Crow era were a bulwark against segregationist propaganda, training the leaders of the Civil Rights Movement and giving Black citizens tools, in the words of Harvard historian Jarvis Givens, 'to imagine a world outside the confines of Jim Crow.' This is why fascists attack teachers. Democratic education enhances human flourishing, supports human dignity, and shapes children into critical, thoughtful, generous, empathetic citizens." (pp. 23-24)
Anyway, I found this book insightful but also scary. The comparisons between current U.S. politics and Nazi Germany were particularly horrifying. I hope Trump is imprisoned and somehow, some way, this country gets off the train to fascism.
January 30, 2025
Essay on importance of education against political backsliding.
“The ultimate test of compassion is civic defense: the stance of citizens towards each other, as civil neighbors, far and wide, who will not abandon people to avoidable suffering or go murderers. […]
When a society evolves into condition that is so complex and fragmented by social class and occupational specialization that great sociopsychic distance between population groups becomes a normal state of affairs, then insufficient compassion emerges as a distinct, collective, moral problem. In non-democratic societies, this problem is mitigated by hierarchical corporate status ideologies. In democratic societies, [by] language of “unity,” or “solidarity.” […]
The challenge is the more difficult one of bringing people to the point of understanding the objective historical and existing conditions of groups with whom they have had no personal life experience. Compassion presupposes the ability to “take the role of the other” in some particularly subtle and i formed way.”
“The ultimate test of compassion is civic defense: the stance of citizens towards each other, as civil neighbors, far and wide, who will not abandon people to avoidable suffering or go murderers. […]
When a society evolves into condition that is so complex and fragmented by social class and occupational specialization that great sociopsychic distance between population groups becomes a normal state of affairs, then insufficient compassion emerges as a distinct, collective, moral problem. In non-democratic societies, this problem is mitigated by hierarchical corporate status ideologies. In democratic societies, [by] language of “unity,” or “solidarity.” […]
The challenge is the more difficult one of bringing people to the point of understanding the objective historical and existing conditions of groups with whom they have had no personal life experience. Compassion presupposes the ability to “take the role of the other” in some particularly subtle and i formed way.”
November 21, 2024
“Classical texts are, by and large, just as relevant today as when they were written. But they are not a basis for any group to think itself superior to others. To see the United States as a descendent of a classical Greek and Roman tradition is to engage in a self aggrandizing nationalist myth just as a Nazis did.
“We must be cautious in transposing any element of classical thought to our own time. There is no uniform set of values or ideals that span this vast stretch of time, much less uniformly positive ones that would be worth unconditionally celebrating as a distinctive national inheritance. We must remember, after all, that classical societies, practiced slavery, insisted on the subservience of women, and held many views that we would today find reprehensible.”
Profoundly relevant - with democracy on the line, freedom at bay, education and journalism strained. The enemy is before us…”single selfishness, compulsive greed…”authoritarianism, fascism, vitiating our shared understandings of reality.
Bears rereading.
“We must be cautious in transposing any element of classical thought to our own time. There is no uniform set of values or ideals that span this vast stretch of time, much less uniformly positive ones that would be worth unconditionally celebrating as a distinctive national inheritance. We must remember, after all, that classical societies, practiced slavery, insisted on the subservience of women, and held many views that we would today find reprehensible.”
Profoundly relevant - with democracy on the line, freedom at bay, education and journalism strained. The enemy is before us…”single selfishness, compulsive greed…”authoritarianism, fascism, vitiating our shared understandings of reality.
Bears rereading.
December 4, 2024
Extremely readable and awfully fucking scary. This book not only outlines how a fascist regime can happen in our beautiful United States but is likely on the eve of happening, right now. And we should all be very worried.
From book banning to erasing mentions of race or sexuality in public schools and universities (it’s happening right here in Florida). From the propagation of “racial purity” to the ideology of strict gender roles. We are heading down a dangerous path embraced by a society that has clearly proven by votes they are dedicated to maintaining white supremacism in our country. This book is a must read to understand why we ended up where we are today, because without an understanding of how we got here — how can we move forward and try to right size democracy in our future.
From book banning to erasing mentions of race or sexuality in public schools and universities (it’s happening right here in Florida). From the propagation of “racial purity” to the ideology of strict gender roles. We are heading down a dangerous path embraced by a society that has clearly proven by votes they are dedicated to maintaining white supremacism in our country. This book is a must read to understand why we ended up where we are today, because without an understanding of how we got here — how can we move forward and try to right size democracy in our future.
December 31, 2024
This is both daunting and unnerving. Education and educators frequently find themselves under attack from fascists, something we should be vigilant about as we anticipate a new presidency. I appreciate that Stanley highlights how essential education is, yet it remains out of reach for some and often exclusive to faculty and universities. He also discusses that education can also be used to erase people’s histories as it has happened with indigenous people and those colonized. Recently, the University of Iowa announced plans to possibly cut several programs, including Jewish studies, women's studies, Latino studies, and American studies in the near future. We’ll see what happens.
December 28, 2024
Despite correctly identifying a major problem, this book and the many others like it that warn of the Orange Menace, is aggravating on several levels. First, Stanley makes his case in an academically abstract way and offers impractical solutions only an academician would propose, i.e. "defining a different version of America, one that is conducive to democracy and human flourishing." But, more importantly, the only people who will read this book already know about the problem and want to do something about it. They have been outvoted by people who will never read this book, much less embrace Stanley's well reasoned thesis. That includes Ivy-educated hacks like Ron DeSantis, Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz and J.D. Vance who theoretically stand of a chance of grasping Stanley's mind-numbing prose.
December 11, 2024
This was not a light read. And it may be missing the concrete call to action that many of us are hungry for post this last election, however, it is important.
Every attack on schools, every attack on the stories of the disenfranchised, the legacy of the minority voice is an attack on democracy.
I just wish I felt like a gerrymandered, citizens united, electoral college system was a democracy in the first place...
As a friend recently said to me, "if there was really any power in voting, they wouldn't let us do it."
Every attack on schools, every attack on the stories of the disenfranchised, the legacy of the minority voice is an attack on democracy.
I just wish I felt like a gerrymandered, citizens united, electoral college system was a democracy in the first place...
As a friend recently said to me, "if there was really any power in voting, they wouldn't let us do it."
October 13, 2024
Really tightly argued book zeroing in on the singular importance of public education to the life and health of democracies, and (thus) why K-12 and higher education and public libraries are such targets of autocrats and fascists. Stanley's a philosophy professor, but this book is pitched for a general-interest audience, so it's quite readable (if nervous-making).
January 31, 2025
Jason Stanley has a very efficient and clear way of communicating his research, history, and his arguments. This book functions as a great companion to his previous “How Fascism Works” and I think works as a great overview with clear language and current and historical examples of his individual points. Honestly, his books are great reference points and I refer back to them often as I further my reading. Always love his books, looking forward to reading the others.
November 14, 2024
What a timely book. *cue sad face* this was released in September 2024 and it’s scary to see how this book pertains to so many things going on in various countries right now. History truly does repeat itself.
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