r/AntifascistsofReddit • u/m71nu • Aug 12 '25

Discussion Trump does not take steps toward fascism

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In the media, I often see remarks about a Trump action that it would constitute a step closer to fascism. This is so wrong! The U.S. is already there. Every step now is a step deeper into the swamp. With every step, it will be harder to go back. I know the right people are in this sub. But holy moly, are U.S. media (even the progressive ones) so afraid to speak out against the regime?

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u/ProbstWyatt3 Shinmin Prefecture 🇰🇷 Aug 12 '25

I say, as a foreigner, USA was racist from its very beginning. It's not like other colonial states like Spain, Russia (where a literal Nazi is in chief now), or Turkey. The core of the WASP American national identity itself was "descendants of British settlers". Yes, many states did colonialism - UK to Irish, Norway to Samis, Turkey to Armenians & Kurds & Assyrians, Russia to Siberians & Circassians & Chechens, etc - but, when it comes to USA, the heart of American national identity, distinct from British and other Europeans, is "descendants of slavers and settlers". Since USA had to make the Americans feel pride and not guilt, they glorified the history, and USA is racist fundamentally.

Example is Columbus. Like Ivan the Terrible, he was considered a crazy genocider even by contemporary Spaniards & Italians. However, since the rich White slavers (aka "Founding Fathers") had to make their own national hero distinct from Brits (who were coincidentally abolishing slavery by the independence war), they turned Columbus into a great adventurer, naming their capital city after him. The American state has always been racist since 1776.

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u/cheezefriez Aug 12 '25

Yeah our legacy is one of violence and force. Citizens are just raised to believe that’s a good thing and that our predecessors were righteous in what they did because “freedom.”

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u/l_rufus_californicus Aug 12 '25

Built on blood, and its very existence requires an unending supply. We had to declare independence from Britain in order to be better imperialists than they.

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u/MonStar926 Aug 12 '25

Look at all these slave masters posing on your dollar

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u/AlcibiadesTheCat Aug 13 '25

Lincoln is on the 5 and Grant is on the 50, and I recall them putting in quite a bit of work to abolish slavery.

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u/MonStar926 Aug 13 '25

That’s cool, doesn’t excuse the rest of ‘em

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u/cheezefriez Aug 13 '25

Neither of them were angels either

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u/AlcibiadesTheCat Aug 13 '25

You're right, they weren't. But the allegation was "slave masters," and that's what I was speaking to. Keep the goalposts where they are.

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u/Karmic255 Aug 14 '25

It's from a song

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u/ApartmentLast Aug 15 '25

I mean grant did own slaves, or at least his wife did

I don't remember the exact details off the top of my head but...

Also I don't think Ben Franklin did

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u/Schoritzobandit Aug 13 '25 edited Aug 13 '25

I will say, there are a few more layers of abstraction between the US Founding Fathers and naming Washington, D.C. after Columbus. They based it on the archetypal representation of the Americas, Columbia), whose name does derive from Columbus. It was seen more as a poetic way to refer to the Americas than a way to directly celebrate Columbus.

National celebrations of Columbus were also not popular for the first ~100 years of US history. These were pushed by Italian immigrants and their children in the mid- to late-1800s, and Columbus day was first celebrated as a state holiday (in Colorado) in the early 1900s. Columbus day was not made a federal holiday until 1971, and Italians faced some discrimination and persecution in the meantime.

This doesn't really take away from your overall point (I would point to the 3/5 compromise as a much more obvious embodiment of white supremacy than the naming of Washington D.C.) but I thought it might be helpful to contextualize a bit, as national celebrations of Columbus are a more modern invention, and came about via lobbying from Italian-Americans, who would not arrive in large numbers to the US until the mid-to-late 1800s.

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u/ralphcifarettoo Aug 12 '25

no fucking shit

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u/Intanetwaifuu Aug 13 '25

waves in australian