Italy: The rise of the new fascism

Source: Jacobin

A shocking new book on Italian neo-fascism by Jacobin editor David Broder

Mussolini’s Grandchildren
Fascism in Contemporary Italy

Pluto Press

In this new book, Jacobin’s Europe editor David Broder picks apart the story behind the rise of Giorgia Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia.

A disturbing yet fascinating read, it shows how the party secured hegemony over fascist subcultures whilst embracing a raft of more pragmatic policy positions, fusing harsh Islamophobia and anti-communism with support for the European Union and NATO.

As countervailing anti-fascist forces in Italian society wane, the far-right party’s mission to redeem historical fascism, legitimize its political heirs and shift the terrain of mainstream politics is proving alarmingly successful.

Jacobin readers can get the book with 40% off from the publisher Pluto Press. To claim, use the coupon code ‘BRODER40’ at checkout.

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Source: https://www.plutobooks.com/events/david-broder/

David Broder
European University Institute

Fiesole, 50014 Fiesole, Metropolitan City of Florence, Italy

In this lecture, David Broder will present his latest book ’Mussolini’s Grandchildren: Fascism in Contemporary Italy’.

After the fall of Benito Mussolini, antifascism became the founding principle of the Italian Republic. Now, eighty years later, Italy is governed by political forces directly descending from historical fascism. How did this happen?

In his latest book Mussolini’s Grandchildren: Fascism in Contemporary Italy, David Broder answers this question by looking at the history of neofascist movements in Italy after the Second World War. By integrating neofascist tradition into a broader framework of international conservative politics, the Italian far right has proven alarmingly successful in legitimising its presence in contemporary politics. However, this would not have been possible without a decades-long process of undermining antifascist memory culture and revising Italy’s recent history. Broder’s book meticulously reconstructs the strategy of restoring neofascism into the mainstream – and warns that its effectiveness is not limited to Italy.

David Broder is a historian of French and Italian communism and Jacobin’s Europe editor. After the book talk, a discussion with the audience will follow. The talk will take place in-person.

Please click the link below to book a seat.

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Source: https://www.plutobooks.com/blog/podcast-mussolinis-grandchildren-fasicism-in-contemporary-italy/

PODCAST: ‘Radicals in Conversation’
Mussolini’s Grandchildren: Fascism in Contemporary Italy
by Pluto Press

Listen here 50:28

Giorgia Meloni’s Fratelli d’Italia, or Brothers of Italy, emerged from the Italian general election earlier this week with around 26% of the vote. Although it has been a junior partner in previous coalition governments, this is the first time that the party, which traces its lineage back to Mussolini and the post-war fascism of the Italian Social Movement (MSI), has become the largest political force in the country.

Surging to prominence in recent years, Fratelli d’Italia has waged a fierce culture war against the Left, polarised political debate around World War II, and sought to redeem historical fascism, legitimise its political heirs and ultimately shift the terrain of mainstream politics to the right. Now poised to take power, many in the international community are asking how this has happened.

We are joined on the show by David Broder, author of Mussolini’s Grandchildren: Fascism in Contemporary Italy, to analyse the situation in Italy in the wake of the election.

Mussolini’s Grandchildren is published in March 2023. Pre-order it now.