Crypto-fascism
Encyclopedia
Crypto-fascism is a pejorative
term implying a secret support for, or admiration of, fascism
. The term is used to imply that an individual or group keeps this support or admiration hidden to avoid political persecution or political suicide
.
The term is largely credited to Gore Vidal
. In a television interview during the chaos of the 1968 Democratic National Convention
, Vidal described William F. Buckley, Jr.
as a "crypto-Nazi
", later correcting himself as meaning to say "crypto-fascist". However, the term appeared five years earlier in a German language book by the sociologist Theodor W. Adorno
, Der getreue Korrepetitor (The Faithful Répétiteur).
Pejorative
Pejoratives , including name slurs, are words or grammatical forms that connote negativity and express contempt or distaste. A term can be regarded as pejorative in some social groups but not in others, e.g., hacker is a term used for computer criminals as well as quick and clever computer experts...
term implying a secret support for, or admiration of, fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
. The term is used to imply that an individual or group keeps this support or admiration hidden to avoid political persecution or political suicide
Political suicide
Political suicide is the concept that a politician or political party would lose widespread support and confidence from the voting public by proposing actions that are seen as unfavourable or that might threaten the status quo. A politician who committed political suicide might be forced to resign...
.
The term is largely credited to Gore Vidal
Gore Vidal
Gore Vidal is an American author, playwright, essayist, screenwriter, and political activist. His third novel, The City and the Pillar , outraged mainstream critics as one of the first major American novels to feature unambiguous homosexuality...
. In a television interview during the chaos of the 1968 Democratic National Convention
1968 Democratic National Convention
The 1968 Democratic National Convention of the U.S. Democratic Party was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois, from August 26 to August 29, 1968. Because Democratic President Lyndon Johnson had announced he would not seek a second term, the purpose of the convention was to...
, Vidal described William F. Buckley, Jr.
William F. Buckley, Jr.
William Frank Buckley, Jr. was an American conservative author and commentator. He founded the political magazine National Review in 1955, hosted 1,429 episodes of the television show Firing Line from 1966 until 1999, and was a nationally syndicated newspaper columnist. His writing was noted for...
as a "crypto-Nazi
Nazism
Nazism, the common short form name of National Socialism was the ideology and practice of the Nazi Party and of Nazi Germany...
", later correcting himself as meaning to say "crypto-fascist". However, the term appeared five years earlier in a German language book by the sociologist Theodor W. Adorno
Theodor W. Adorno
Theodor W. Adorno was a German sociologist, philosopher, and musicologist known for his critical theory of society....
, Der getreue Korrepetitor (The Faithful Répétiteur).
See also
- TaqiyyaTaqiyyaTaqiyya , meaning religious dissimulation, is a practice emphasized in Shi'a Islam whereby adherents may conceal their religion when they are under threat, persecution, or compulsion...
- Crypto-anarchismCrypto-anarchismCrypto-anarchism expounds the use of strong public-key cryptography to bring about privacy and freedom. It was described by Vernor Vinge as a cyberspatial realization of anarchism. Crypto-anarchists aim to create cryptographic software that can be used to evade prosecution and harassment while...
- Crypto-ChristianityCrypto-ChristianityCrypto-Christianity commonly refers to the secret practice of the Christian religion, usually while attempting to camouflage it as another faith or observing the rituals of another religion publicly...
- Crypto-communismCrypto-communismCrypto-communism is a pejorative term implying a secret support for, or admiration of, communism. The term is used to imply that an individual or group keeps this support or admiration hidden to avoid political persecution or political suicide.- See also :...
- Crypto-JudaismCrypto-JudaismCrypto-Judaism is the secret adherence to Judaism while publicly professing to be of another faith; practitioners are referred to as "crypto-Jews"...
- Crypto-politicsCrypto-politicsCrypto-politics or crypto-political refers to several concepts:#Secret adherence of an individual or group to a controversial political ideology. Crypto-politics or crypto-political refers to several concepts:#Secret adherence of an individual or group to a controversial political ideology....
External links
- Political Animals: Vidal, Buckley and the ’68 Conventions - Page dedicated to the debate in which the crypto-Nazi statement was made by Gore Vidal.
- Soundtrack of the debate (MP3)