Violence in Thought. When Does Fascism Begin?

Fascism is on everyone's lips. However, fascists are always the others: even the most authoritarian governments claim to be fighting fascism. But what exactly is fascism? Where does it begin? With governments that themselves create the insecurity they then combat with authoritarian measures? Or with an omnipresent feeling of threat? Many long for a return to a world where there were clear boundaries and roles. Others call for a world where all danger is averted through correct speech and proper consumption. In the process, egocentricity can hardly be distinguished from genuine concerns, and effect seems more important than truth. Foresight, planning, the future, argumentation, knowledge – those are things of the past. When does fascism begin?

Mark Terkessidis asks about the prerequisites for fascism. He shows how the upheavals of the 1960s got stuck in half-hearted reforms and why the reaction consists of radical nostalgia. He describes a new political continuum in which the endangered community takes center stage – even among the so-called progressive forces.

“An indispensable compendium for orientation in the present. Violence in Thought develops new concepts at a time when understanding itself has become the target of populist attacks.” – Hito Steyerl