The Price of Control: Black Voices on Fascism and Freedom
Source: European University Institute
Segregated Waiting Rooms Source: CNN
Fascism abroad and racism at home. Both use fear, control, and exclusion
Fascism is often taught as something distant, such as Mussolini in Italy, Hitler in Germany, a relic of 20th-century Europe. But the reality is, many African Americans have lived through fascism in everything but the name. Authoritarian control, voter suppression, propaganda, and state-sponsored violence have all existed here, often hiding behind the veil of democracy. As we take a deeper dive into fascism through the lens of African American oral history, it becomes clear, fascism is not always foreign, and it is not always in the past.
Segregated Bathrooms Source: USM Digital Commons
Jim Crow laws and police intimidation in the Deep South were everyday realities.
While Natchez, Mississippi, may have appeared refined, beneath the surface was a structure of fear and forced obedience.
The foundations of fascism are built on exclusion. Determining who belongs, who deserves rights, and who gets to live without fear. In the Jim Crow South, these systems were brutal, calculated, and often deadly. Author and magazine reporter Vernon Smith, born in Mississippi, remembered life under constant racial surveillance and control. Smith says, “ You could see how people were living, you know, the white neighborhood and the Black neighborhood. It was stark…The violence there and the [Ku Klux] Klan activity was strong all through the civil rights era… Even though Black people were predominant, they were disenfranchised largely because of the violence.”
Fascism thrives when one group’s dominance is protected at all costs and enforced through violence.
Resistance to authoritarianism often begins with ordinary people demanding accountability. For civil rights activist and city council member Sala Udin, the 1995 death of Jonny Gammage at the hands of police turned his grief into action. Udin says, “This time, I’m not just a person complaining about police brutality… I’m a city councilman. I introduced legislation to create a Citizen Police Review Board. It was rejected by council. So, I turned it into a referendum. And it passed. Police brutality hasn’t been eliminated, but it has changed.” His story shows how communities challenge fascist tendencies through civic action and public organizing, even when the system resists reform.
1995 Million Man March Source: CNN
Sala Udin turned protest into policy through the Citizen Police Review Board.
Marcus Garvey Quote Source: Facebook
At just thirteen, Baratunde Thurston challenged U.S. propaganda in a school essay.
A key tactic of fascism is control of information. Propaganda defines who the enemy is, rewrites history, and manipulates the masses. That’s something Comedian and author Baratunde Thurston recognized in the eighth grade. Thurston says, “I wrote about the U.S. propaganda machine… It was advising [black people] to be aware of the images of yourself that you’re being fed by media interests that don’t have your interest at heart… I believed it so strongly I wasn’t ashamed.” Even as a teenager, Thurston understood that the fight for freedom includes fighting for the truth. Fascism thrives when people believe the lies they’re told about themselves and each other.
The right to vote is one of the first targets of fascist regimes and a battleground for Black Americans for generations. Professor and physician Dr. Robert L. Smith remembers his battles in Mississippi. Smith says, “ He handed me the Constitution. And I just pushed it back across the table… I said, ‘Now where the hell is the paper I need to register to vote?’” Decades later, Magazine editor Jack White warned that the threats hadn’t gone away; they had simply evolved. White says, “They believe [Obama] is a Socialist. They believe he’s a Muslim. Most of all, they believe he’s Black…And that to them means he’s not legitimate… These kinds of shenanigans are taking place across the country, in addition to all of the voter ID laws aimed at voter suppression.” From literacy tests to redistricting, fascist thinking finds new disguises. But the goal is the same: keep power away from those who threaten the status quo.
Voter Suppression Protest Source: The Equation
Dr. King being Silenced in the Media Source: The New York Times
Leaders like MLK were not just killed; they were misrepresented and muffled.
When fascism rises, it often targets those who speak out. For Corporate executive and association chief executive Allene Singho Roberts, the assassinations of Malcom X and Dr. King were more than tragic losses; they were silencing tactics. Roberts says, “There were mechanisms in place to muffle [Malcom X’s] message. He was moving toward a more unifying approach… I felt like I was a beneficiary of the work that people on the front lines were doing. So whatever I did, I wanted to do it well, to help others.” Fascist states try to destroy leaders before their influence can take root. But as Allene shows, legacy is powerful, and resistance continues through example.
Fascism doesn’t need to seize the entire nation to take hold. It often creeps in through local systems. That’s the lesson, nonprofit director and law professor Sherrilyn Ifill learns firsthand. Ifill says, “I started thinking about the power of the county commission, the local judge, the DA… They have more control over Black lives in those communities than even the president…It was a revelation to me… that there could be this level of voter suppression that flew under the radar.” Real power is often exercised out of sight, in the courtrooms, schools, and sheriff's offices that quietly shape everyday life. That’s where fascism can grow, or be stopped.
Ultimately, knowledge is the greatest tool against fascism. But what happens when people no longer know how power works? Civic leader Leatrice Branch Madison warned of a future where Americans didn’t understand their democracy. Madison says, “Nobody teaches civics anymore… I don’t think kids know how the government is supposed to function. That determines how you vote. It determines everything you do, your thoughts, Education is the basis for everything.” Ignorance is a weapon used by authoritarian systems, but education can disarm it. As Leatrice reminds us, Informed citizens are a threat to control.
Black Student Raising Their Hand in Class Source:iStock
Fascism is not just a European memory. It is an American warning. And Black Americans have been sounding that alarm for generations. Through surveillance, misinformation, voter suppression, and the silencing of voices. Fascism feeds on fear and ignorance. But through action, education, truth, and community, it can be resisted. These eight voices remind us that the struggle isn’t abstract; it's personal. And the fight isn’t new, it’s ongoing.
A Young Person Standing with a Raised Fist Source: Getty Images
Sources:
Vernon Smith (The HistoryMakers A2005.182), interviewed by Paul Brock, August 2, 2005, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 4, story 5, Vernon Smith talks about racial violence and police surveillance in Natchez, Mississippi
Sala Udin (The HistoryMakers A2008.104), interviewed by Larry Crowe, August 12, 2008, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 8, story 9, Sala Udin talks about fighting police brutality on the Pittsburgh City Council after the 1995 killing of Jonny Gammage in police custody
Baratunde Thurston (The HistoryMakers A2014.100), interviewed by Larry Crowe, April 7, 2014, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 3, story 5, Baratunde Thurston describes writing a school paper about U.S. propaganda
Dr. Robert L. Smith (The HistoryMakers A2017.222), interviewed by Randall Pinkston, December 13, 2017, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 4, story 3, Dr. Robert L. Smith describes his experiences of voter suppression in Mississippi
Sherrilyn Ifill (The HistoryMakers A2016.012), interviewed by Julieanna L. Richardson, August 29, 2016, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 5, story 1, Sherrilyn Ifill describes the importance of local politics
Jack White (The HistoryMakers A2013.067), interviewed by Larry Crowe, February 28, 2013, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 11, story 3, Jack White talks about the challenges faced by President Barack Obama
Allene Singho Roberts (The HistoryMakers A2005.062), interviewed by Shawn Wilson, July 28, 2005, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 2, tape 6, story 3, Allene Singho Roberts remembers the Civil Rights Movement
Leatrice Branch Madison (The HistoryMakers A2004.074), interviewed by Regennia Williams, June 14, 2004, The HistoryMakers Digital Archive. Session 1, tape 4, story 3, Leatrice Branch Madison talks about the importance of education reform and her concerns for the 21st century
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