Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 39 minutes ago
The second US presidency of Donald Trump, the clamp down on freedom of speech and protest in the context of the genocide in Palestine and the growing strength of far right-wing, racist and authoritarian movements and parties in many areas of the world have led people to ask are we in fascist times. In this guest lecture by historian of fascism, Kian Aspinall, we will examine whether fascism refers to a distinct era of modern European history (1920s-40s) or whether it can be observed at different times. For many people who face the brunt of state authoritarianism, in particular Black, Indigenous and colonised peoples, fascism has always been here.
As the revolutionary imprisoned Black intellectual George Jackson wrote, the definition of fascism is not settled because of ‘our insistence on a full definition... looking for exactly identical symptoms from nation-to-nation.’ The Martinican intellectual and leader, Aimé Césaire famously wrote that Europeans 'tolerated that Nazism before it was inflicted on them.' He saw Nazi atrocities within Europe as being a reflection of ehat Europeans had done to people in the lands they had colonised for centuries.
We will examine some of the main theories of fascism and relate them to the contemporary question of whether the US regime's ICE raids, Australia's imposition of draconian hate speech legislation and the violent crack-down on protest, etc. are well served by thinking about them as fascist.
Kian Aspinall is a Research Associate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Cambridge and has written his doctorate on Fascism and the Black Radical Tradition.
We discussed the following questions:
Please give us a brief historical overview of European fascism?
What are the broad differences between Italian fascism and German Nazism?
What is the link between fascism and capitalism?
To what extent is fascism popular among ‘the politically homeless ... the socially uprooted, the destitute and the disillusioned’ (Clara Zetkin)?
A big debate in the discussion of fascism is whether it should be confined to a particular period of European history or whether it is ‘an inherent feature of unjust, oppressive societies’ (Trilling). For example, Australia as a settler colony founded on Indigenous dispossession and genocide has some of the features of fascism especially with regards the ongoing subjugation of Indigenous people. What is this debate about and what side of it do you fall on?
Following on from this, some people say that leaders such as Donald Trump (and others recently deposed such as Victor Orban in Hungary) are contemporary fascists, while others say there is a difference between right-wing populism, the extreme right and fascism? What can you tell us about this debate?
Finally, you are in Britain right now where the right-wing Reform party has just won significantly in the local elections. Do you think there will be a Reform government at the next general election? Was factors are necessary to make this happen?
The second US presidency of Donald Trump, the clamp down on freedom of speech and protest in the context of the genocide in Palestine and the growing strength of far right-wing, racist and authoritarian movements and parties in many areas of the world have led people to ask are we in fascist times. In this guest lecture by historian of fascism, Kian Aspinall, we will examine whether fascism refers to a distinct era of modern European history (1920s-40s) or whether it can be observed at different times. For many people who face the brunt of state authoritarianism, in particular Black, Indigenous and colonised peoples, fascism has always been here.
As the revolutionary imprisoned Black intellectual George Jackson wrote, the definition of fascism is not settled because of ‘our insistence on a full definition... looking for exactly identical symptoms from nation-to-nation.’ The Martinican intellectual and leader, Aimé Césaire famously wrote that Europeans 'tolerated that Nazism before it was inflicted on them.' He saw Nazi atrocities within Europe as being a reflection of ehat Europeans had done to people in the lands they had colonised for centuries.
We will examine some of the main theories of fascism and relate them to the contemporary question of whether the US regime's ICE raids, Australia's imposition of draconian hate speech legislation and the violent crack-down on protest, etc. are well served by thinking about them as fascist.
Kian Aspinall is a Research Associate in the Department of Sociology at the University of Cambridge and has written his doctorate on Fascism and the Black Radical Tradition.
We discussed the following questions:
Please give us a brief historical overview of European fascism?
What are the broad differences between Italian fascism and German Nazism?
What is the link between fascism and capitalism?
To what extent is fascism popular among ‘the politically homeless ... the socially uprooted, the destitute and the disillusioned’ (Clara Zetkin)?
A big debate in the discussion of fascism is whether it should be confined to a particular period of European history or whether it is ‘an inherent feature of unjust, oppressive societies’ (Trilling). For example, Australia as a settler colony founded on Indigenous dispossession and genocide has some of the features of fascism especially with regards the ongoing subjugation of Indigenous people. What is this debate about and what side of it do you fall on?
Following on from this, some people say that leaders such as Donald Trump (and others recently deposed such as Victor Orban in Hungary) are contemporary fascists, while others say there is a difference between right-wing populism, the extreme right and fascism? What can you tell us about this debate?
Finally, you are in Britain right now where the right-wing Reform party has just won significantly in the local elections. Do you think there will be a Reform government at the next general election? Was factors are necessary to make this happen?
