Fascism is a political regime, usually totalitarian, ideologically based on centralized government, government control of business, repression of criticism or opposition, a leader cult and exalting the state and/or religion above individual rights. Also by vague analogy, any system of strong autocracy or oligarchy usually to the extent of bending and breaking the law, race-baiting and violence against largely unarmed populations.
Fascism combines a radical and authoritarian nationalist political ideology and a corporatist economic ideology. Fascists advocate the creation of a single-party state. Fascist governments forbid and suppress criticism and opposition to the government and the fascist movement. No common and concise definition exists for fascism and historians and political scientists disagree on what should be in any concise definition. Following World War II, the word fascist has become a slur throughout the political spectrum. Some argue that the term fascist has become hopelessly vague over the years and that it is now little more than a pejorative epithet.
Anti-fascism is the opposition to fascist ideologies, organizations, governments and individuals. Most major resistance movements during World War II were anti-fascist. Militant anti-fascists advocate the use of violence against fascists. They are usually supporters of class struggle, and view fascism as an anti-working class political system.
Contemporary antifascism refers primarily to activist groups that seek to dismantle and drive-out “hate groups” that espouse racist and nationalist ideology. Groups like anti-racist action and anti-fascist action call for the exacerbation of divisions among fascists by physically confronting them wherever they stage demonstrations, marches, distribute literature, or hold meetings. Such antifascism embraces the position of “no platform for fascists”, which amounts to a zero-tolerance policy for the presence of groups such as the Aryan Nations, Volksfront, Canadian Heritage Alliance and the Northern Alliance. This willingness to confront fascism also extends to include confrontations with political parties in Germany, in Britain, and in Canada.
The term antifa refers to individuals and groups that are dedicated to fighting fascism, and some anti-fascist groups include the word antifa in their name. During the 1920s to 1940s, the Soviet Union sponsored various anti-fascist groups, usually using the name antifa.
Large-scale anti-fascist movements were first seen during the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. Amongst others, the International Brigade and the Spanish anarchist militias formed a broad popular anti-fascist movement. The Republican army, the International Brigades, the Workers’ Party of Marxist Unification (POUM) and anarchist militias such as the Iron Column fought the rise of Francisco Franco with military force. The Friends of Durruti were a particularly militant group, associated with the Federación Anarquista Iberica (FAI). Thousands of people from many countries went to Spain in support of the anti-fascist cause, joining International Brigade units such as the Canadian Mackenzie-Papineau Battalion. Notable anti-fascists who worked internationally against Franco included: George Orwell (who fought in the POUM militia and wrote Homage to Catalonia about this experience), Ernest Hemingway (a supporter of the International Brigades who wrote For Whom the Bell Tolls about this experience), radical journalist Martha Gellhorn and Dr Norman Bethune (undoubtedly the most famous Canadian there, created and led a blood transfusion service).
