We have finally grasped one clear identity of fascism. Fascism is, in essence, a deceptive dictatorial system that colluded with the power of a mighty state authority to trample individual freedom, all to protect the private property of the right-wing establishment.
Yet, the moment we hold this lucid definition in our hands, a subsequent, much larger and heavier question catches us by the ankle:
"If fascism was a system for capitalists and the establishment, why were so many ordinary workers of the era so fanatically enthusiastic about Hitler and Mussolini? Why did they willingly unite under the banner of a monster that would oppress them? Were they simply fools blinded by demagoguery?"
Those who look at history superficially easily jump to conclusions, dismissing the masses of that era as "ignorant and foolish beings." However, the truth is far more sophisticated and terrifying. Workers threw themselves into the embrace of fascism not because they were fools, but because of the agonizing despair inflicted by the society of the time, combined with the sweet salvation plan offered by fascism.
Disillusionment with Those Who Showed Nothing but Talk
In the 1920s and 1930s, European workers, hit dead-on by the Great Depression, were tasting hell. Originally, their spokespersons were the left-wing parties (communism and social democracy). However, in the face of crisis, the existing left-wing politicians were utterly incompetent.
Gathered in parliament, they merely engaged in noble, theoretical battles over "how the structural contradictions of capitalism work," failing to hand even a single slice of bread to the unemployed sitting on the streets. On top of that, they were too busy engaging in mudslinging infighting over "who was the purer leftist."
To workers who stared at the empty bellies of their starving children every night, the existing left-wing parties were nothing more than "smooth-talking con artists." It was precisely into this deep crevice of disillusionment that fascism drove a wedge.
The Narcotic of "You Are Not a Dropout"
The workers who became unemployed at the time were exposed to a suffering far more terrifying than economic poverty. It was an intense sense of alienation and helplessness—the feeling that they had become "social dropouts."
At this moment, Hitler and Mussolini took the hands of the workers gathered in the square, pulling their shattered self-esteem up from the very bottom.
"You are not mere losers abandoned by capitalists! You are the proudest workers of this great nation! It is not your fault that you fell behind; it is the fault of those corrupt politicians and greedy Jewish capitalists."
Fascism gifted them a massive sense of belonging as "members of a great empire." The moment they put on identical uniforms, marched in disciplined torchlight parades, and fused into a component of a gigantic collective, the workers felt they had rediscovered the meaning of life. Intoxicated by that narcotic sensation, they voluntarily became the monster’s army.
The Real "Bread" Handed by the Monster
This is the most terrifying magic that fascism performed. They did not agitate with words alone; they actually gave "bread and jobs" to the workers.
The moment Hitler seized power, he launched mega-scale state projects, such as the construction of the Autobahn, to absorb the unemployed en masse. He expanded armaments and ran factories at full capacity, churning out jobs.
To the workers, the left or right of an ideology no longer mattered. A desperate realism dominated the square: "Hitler, who feeds my children warm meals right now even if he runs a dictatorship, is a hundred times better than those guys who starved me while fighting every day over ‘democracy’ and ‘parliament.’"
They united under the banner of fascism entirely unaware that they were being used as a shield for the right-wing establishment—or perhaps, they knew but chose to look the other way.
In Order Not to Drink the Sweet Poisoned Chalice
Ultimately, the unity of the workers is the sorrowful reality of "mass dictatorship"—a system where the monster of fascism lined the pockets of the establishment while securing the most fervent support and love from the ruled masses. The reason fascism remains the most cunning and fatal monster in human history is that it emerged by flawlessly healing "hunger" and "alienation," the most vulnerable vulnerabilities of the masses.
Today’s society is also groaning under inequality and alienation no less severe than that of the Great Depression. Disillusionment with an overly talkative, incompetent political establishment, and the loneliness felt in a dog-eat-dog society. What if someone appears on this barren soil once again, using charming, populist language to promise immediate, sweet rewards, saying, "It’s not your fault; let’s trample those enemies and stick together"?
History repeats itself. Even if the bread offered by a monster looks incredibly sweet, we must recognize that the price of that bread is a poisoned chalice that requires surrendering our freedom and dignity entirely. Only when we remember this brutal lesson of history can we safeguard ourselves from the madness of the square.
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