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Are We Living in a Fascist State? Lessons from Umberto Eco

(Updated January 2026: Events since initial publication suggest the dynamics described here have intensified.)

The word fascism gets thrown around a lot. For some, it’s already here, woven into every policy they oppose. For others, the very suggestion is absurd, an insult rather than a diagnosis. I want to posit that both sides approach this argument with an oversimplified perspective. One that seems like it’s easier to defend their stance and attack the opposition. But one that doesn’t appreciate the value of nuance and specificity. And that’s what I want to cover today.

In 1995, the Italian novelist and philosopher Umberto Eco published an essay titled Ur-Fascism (sometimes subtitled Eternal Fascism: Fourteen Ways of Looking at a Blackshirt). Eco grew up in the world of Mussolini’s fascist regime in Italy, so he had quite a personal connection to the topic. But his focus in the essay was not to try to provide a checklist of laws or party platforms. Instead, he offered a cultural x-ray. In the work, he identified fourteen recurring traits that signal the presence of what he called “eternal fascism.” Why focus on this? Eco maintained that fascism doesn’t always begin with dictatorships or uniforms. More often, it starts with habits of thought and speech that make authoritarian politics seem acceptable.

If we look around today, many of those cultural traits are visible. I thought it might be useful to go through the list briefly, with examples of current events and relevant news stories from recent years. We’re building a case here, but I want to do so in a way that doesn’t isolate. If it offends, that’s fine and probably necessary. If it angers, that, too, is understandable.

Umberto Eco’s 14 Traits of Cultural Fascism (with US examples)

  1. Cult of tradition.
    • “Make America Great Again” as a central slogan since 2016, revived in 2024 (Reuters).
    • January 2025: Pentagon press releases referred to “Department of War” alongside “Department of Defense” (White House Archive). Subsequent executive order to restore the title fully.
  2. Rejection of modernism.
    • Pew Research (Feb 2024): 56% of Republicans said the U.S. has gone “too far” accepting LGBTQ+ people.
    • Climate change mocked in 2024 campaign rallies despite 2023 being the hottest year on record.
  3. Cult of action for action’s sake.
    • By Aug 2025, Trump had issued 200+ executive orders — the fastest pace in U.S. history.
    • Many later challenged in court, but praised as “bold action.”
  4. Disagreement is treason.
    • Trump labeled journalists “enemies of the people” as recently as 2024 rallies.
    • GOP members who certified 2020 results still branded “traitors” during 2024 primaries (Politico).
  5. Fear of difference.
    • DHS memo (Jan 2025) described migration as an “invasion” (New York Times).
    • “Don’t Say Gay”–style bills passed in 14 states by mid-2024 (ACLU tracker).
  6. Appeal to a frustrated middle class.
    • Pew Research (Mar 2025): 72% of Americans named grocery prices as their top economic worry.
    • AAA recorded gas prices peaking at $4.17/gal average in summer 2024.
  7. Obsession with a plot.
    • “Stolen election” rhetoric continued into 2024–25 (CNN poll).
    • 40% of Americans still say Biden was not legitimately elected in 2020.
  8. Enemies both strong and weak.
    • Migrants depicted as “stealing jobs” and “freeloading” in 2024 campaign ads (Washington Post).
  9. Pacifism is trafficking with the enemy.
    • Opponents of increased defense budgets branded “weakening America” in 2025 debates (C-SPAN).
  10. Contempt for the weak.
    • Mockery of unhoused populations followed the SCOTUS Grants Pass ruling (June 2024), allowing stricter bans on public camping.
  11. Education for heroism.
    • “Every American a warrior in the fight to save our country” — line repeated at Trump rallies (2024–25).
  12. Machismo.
    • Political ads portraying toughness, gun ownership, and aggression as signs of leadership (NPR).
  13. Selective populism.
    • “Real Americans” invoked as rural/white/Christian, excluding cities and immigrants (Brookings).
  14. Newspeak.
    • Policy debates flattened into chants: Build the Wall, America First, Drill Baby Drill (AP).

None of these traits, on their own, mean we are living under fascism. But together they create a culture where authoritarian solutions feel natural. To some, they even feel necessary. This is what Eco meant by Ur-Fascism: not a government system yet, but a way of priming society to accept one.

The step beyond culture is politics, and this is where the conversation turns sharper. Political fascism is what happens when these cultural moods harden into state power. It isn’t just talk of scapegoats; it is raids and registries. It isn’t just the glorification of toughness; it is militarized police with military equipment deployed in civilian neighborhoods. It isn’t just celebrating action; it is the steady expansion of executive power at the expense of legislatures and courts. Suppression of dissent shifts from cultural shaming to legal risk.

Here, let’s do it this way. Below are the structural markers most often used to describe political fascism:

Ten Traits of Political Fascism (with U.S. policy examples)

  1. Authoritarian leadership.
    • Jan 2025: Executive Orders 14290 & 14291 mandated alien-registration and nationwide ICE sweeps (White House).
    • SCOTUS (Sept 2025) paused order requiring $4B in foreign aid to be spent → expands executive discretion over congressionally approved funds (Reuters).
    • SCOTUS (Sept 2025) temporarily allowed Trump to fire FTC commissioner without cause → undermines independence of regulatory agencies, concentrating power in presidency (Al Jazeera, AOL).
  2. Extreme nationalism.
    • “America First” framing dominated the 2024 RNC and Trump’s 2025 State of the Union (C-SPAN).
  3. Cult of tradition and myth.
  4. Suppression of dissent.
    • ACLU (Apr 2025): 13 states advanced anti-protest bills increasing penalties (ACLU report).
  5. Militarism and violence.
    • Pentagon’s 1033 program transferred $222 million in surplus gear to police in FY2023.
  6. Scapegoating and exclusion.
    • ICE operations in Los Angeles, New York, Chicago, Feb 2025 (NYT).
    • SCOTUS (Sept 2025) allowed ICE to use racial criteria in LA immigration stops → legalizes racial profiling, institutionalizing scapegoating of immigrants (The Guardian).
  7. Propaganda and mass mobilization.
    • Trump rallies in 2025 branded as “policy rollouts,” but indistinguishable from campaign events (Washington Post).
  8. Anti-democratic ideology.
    • SCOTUS (June 2024) expanded presidential immunity (SCOTUSblog).
    • SCOTUS (Feb 2025) narrowed nationwide injunctions (SCOTUSblog).
    • SCOTUS (Sept 2025) paused order requiring $4B in foreign aid to be spent (AP News).
  9. Erosion of the free press.
  10. Fusion of state and business.
    • 2025 tariffs conditioned on domestic sourcing deals (WSJ).
    • “Patriotic corporations” celebrated by White House, while noncompliant firms penalized.
  11. Unity over individualism.
    • Trump (RNC 2024): “One nation, one voice—we cannot afford division” (C-SPAN).

None of this adds up, at least not yet, to Mussolini’s Italy or Hitler’s Germany. We still have elections. For now. Courts sometimes restrain executive power. Civil society is active, if overstretched. But to pretend these developments mean nothing is to look away as the ground shifts under our feet.

Eco warned that fascism isn’t a single ideology but a family of habits, waiting for the right conditions. Many of those conditions exist here, now. We’re not yet over the cliff, but the gravel is sliding underfoot. It has been for a while, even prior to the current calendar year. The real danger isn’t only in political leaders, but in how easily we accept slogans, scapegoats, and simplifications as normal.

The truth is, no law or executive order can decide for us whether America tips into fascism. That choice belongs to millions of smaller acts:

  • Vote in every election, local and national.
  • Subscribe to and share credible journalism.
  • Show up at school board and city council meetings.
  • Support libraries and public education.
  • Call or write elected officials regularly.
  • Defend the right to protest, even for those you disagree with.
  • Donate time or money to watchdog groups (ACLU, SPLC, etc.).
  • Fact-check before reposting or sharing news.
  • Protect marginalized neighbors—be visible in solidarity.
  • Refuse dehumanizing language in conversation.

These aren’t glamorous duties. They’re ordinary, stubborn ones. And yet, they may be the only guardrails left, which makes them all the more necessary. So the question is simple, but not easy: as the habits of fascism continue creeping closer, what will you refuse to get used to? And how will you take a stand?

Addendum — January 2026

Since this article’s publication (September 9, 2025), several developments have intensified both the cultural and structural markers discussed below. Patterns that once appeared episodic now recur across domains: justice, enforcement, media, and foreign policy.

Updated Cultural Traits

  1. Cult of tradition
    • Formal restoration and normalization of the “Department of War,” explicitly tied to WWII-era symbolism (White House statements; Reuters).
  2. Rejection of modernism
    • Open dismissal of multilateralism and international law as constraints, particularly in disputes involving NATO allies and Greenland (Reuters; AP).
  3. Cult of action for action’s sake
    • Rapid use of force abroad (Venezuela; strikes in Syria, Nigeria, Iran) and large-scale domestic enforcement executed prior to public legal justification (Reuters; NYT).
  4. Disagreement is treason
    • DOJ investigations, subpoenas, or indictments targeting political opponents and independent officials (including James Comey, Letitia James, Jerome Powell, Lisa Cook, Adam Schiff, Eric Swalwell, Jack Smith) documented by ABC News and Reuters.
  5. Fear of difference
    • Immigration enforcement framed as collective security threat rather than individualized legal process (AP; Guardian).
  6. Appeal to a frustrated middle class
    • Economic anxiety (prices, housing, jobs) explicitly linked to immigration and foreign actors in national messaging (Pew; Reuters).
  7. Obsession with a plot
    • Persistent claims of coordinated internal enemies across government, media, academia, and finance (Reuters).
  8. Enemies both strong and weak
    • Political opponents and foreign leaders portrayed as simultaneously incompetent and existential threats (AP; Guardian).
  9. Pacifism is trafficking with the enemy
    • Calls for restraint—domestic or foreign—framed as weakening national resolve or aiding adversaries (Reuters).
  10. Contempt for the weak
    • Civilian deaths and rights violations during enforcement dismissed as necessary collateral (Washington Post; AP).
  11. Education for heroism
    • Warrior ethos promoted as civic virtue in enforcement and foreign policy messaging (Reuters).
  12. Machismo
    • Aggressive posturing celebrated as strength; restraint depicted as weakness (AP).
  13. Selective populism
    • “The people” invoked narrowly against courts, regulators, journalists, and dissenting officials (Reuters).
  14. Newspeak
    • Complex legal and geopolitical actions compressed into slogans (“absolute resolve,” “on offense,” “no going back”) (AP).

Updated Political Traits

  1. Authoritarian leadership
    • Removal or sidelining of inspectors general and attorneys general deemed insufficiently loyal; documented campaign of retaliation targeting hundreds of individuals and institutions (Reuters retribution tracker).
  2. Extreme nationalism
    • Threats to acquire Greenland “by any means necessary,” including refusal to rule out force, taken seriously by NATO allies (Reuters; AP).
  3. Cult of tradition and myth
    • Militarized symbolism and historical nostalgia used to justify exceptional authority at home and abroad (Reuters).
  4. Suppression of dissent
    • Pressure on prosecutors who declined politically motivated charges; FBI searches of journalists’ homes tied to national security reporting (ABC News; Guardian).
  5. Militarism and violence
    • Deployment of federal forces and National Guard units into major U.S. cities (Los Angeles, Chicago, Minneapolis, Florida) over local objections; use of masked agents refusing identification (AP; ACLU; American Progress).
  6. Scapegoating and exclusion
    • Immigration raids across multiple cities treated as collective punishment rather than individualized law enforcement (AP; Guardian).
  7. Propaganda and mass mobilization
    • Official messaging frames enforcement operations and foreign interventions as moral imperatives rather than policy choices (Reuters).
  8. Anti-democratic ideology
    • Seizure and removal of Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro conducted without prior congressional authorization or knowledge, justified post hoc as “law enforcement” (Reuters; NYT).
  9. Erosion of the free press
    • Litigation and financial pressure against major outlets; consolidation; law-enforcement actions against journalists intensifying chilling effects (AP; Reuters; Medill).
  10. Fusion of state power and loyalty networks
    • Extensive use of clemency and pardons for political allies—including blanket pardons for January 6 defendants and pardons/commutations for fraud, corruption, and drug-trafficking convictions when expedient—undercutting prosecutorial outcomes (AP; Wikipedia clemency list).

Updated Threat Assessment (January 2026)

The United States has not yet fully fallen into a fascist state in the historical sense. Elections remain scheduled; courts still intervene; civil society persists. But we’re teetering on the edge.

What has changed is convergence. Retaliation against opponents, normalization of executive force, erosion of prosecutorial independence, instrumental use of clemency, and disregard for allied sovereignty are now appearing simultaneously across domains. This marks a shift from cultural priming to institutional rehearsal.

As the habits of fascism continue creeping closer, the question is no longer whether the warning signs are visible—but which ones we will choose to treat as normal.

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