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Letter: Will we be next?

Editor, Gazette-Journal:

Our collective history reflects the struggle for democracy—the idea that all citizens should have a voice in the decisions that influence their lives.

Yet, research by Pew finds that about 7 percent of Americans do not believe in democracy and a larger percent would entertain some other form of government. Jason Stanley, a Yale philosopher and son of holocaust survivors, has studied fascism closely. In his book, “How Fascism Works: The Politics of Us and Them,” he notes that fascism is based on power that is vested in a single individual and supported by a small group that attempts to secure power through propaganda that inverts the truth.

Other key elements include the belief in a mythic past, hyper-nationalism that values loyalty to one group that is simultaneously seen as superior to others and as victims (e.g., of Muslims, blacks, Mexicans, or women), hyper-masculinity and patriarchy (where women are seen as objects and relegated to a s...

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