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A review by schnaucl
Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism by Rachel Maddow
challenging
dark
informative
sad
slow-paced
3.5
I know Rachel Maddow is well known for starting in one seemingly disconnected place and then tying it into the point she's making but even I did not predict the book on Fascism in America circa World War II starting with the person responsible for the first published gay vampire novel.
I think this book is important and worth reading, but it felt broad and shallower than I would have liked. I think the intent was to show just how deep the rot ran and by the end how much everyone just wanted to sweep it under the rug rather and into the memory hole rather than actually face it and try to cut out the corruption. There was one attempt, and it was a real attempt, but when it failed through not fault of those making the attempt, those in power took the opportunity to return to the status quo. I kept feeling like maybe expanding a couple of chapters with a tighter focus would have had more impact.
It was a very depressing read because I think the same pattern is repeating itself (and is one reason Trump can run again in 2024). We had the January 6 Committee, which did good work, but I think left to its own devices the DOJ would have just tried to memory hole all the abuses under the Trump administration. And certainly the cases now are only going to get one shot.
That's America's MO. We must never look backward, only forward (which means we almost never actually try to hold people in power accountable). It happened after the abuses of the Bush Administration during the War on Terror, and after the collapse of the housing market in 2008, and it very nearly happened with Trump personally, and is still true of much of the corruption by people in his administration.
In the end, not only were all the Nazi supporters largely forgotten, so were the people fought so hard to hold them accountable.
I think this book is important and worth reading, but it felt broad and shallower than I would have liked. I think the intent was to show just how deep the rot ran and by the end how much everyone just wanted to sweep it under the rug rather and into the memory hole rather than actually face it and try to cut out the corruption. There was one attempt, and it was a real attempt, but when it failed through not fault of those making the attempt, those in power took the opportunity to return to the status quo. I kept feeling like maybe expanding a couple of chapters with a tighter focus would have had more impact.
It was a very depressing read because I think the same pattern is repeating itself (and is one reason Trump can run again in 2024). We had the January 6 Committee, which did good work, but I think left to its own devices the DOJ would have just tried to memory hole all the abuses under the Trump administration. And certainly the cases now are only going to get one shot.
That's America's MO. We must never look backward, only forward (which means we almost never actually try to hold people in power accountable). It happened after the abuses of the Bush Administration during the War on Terror, and after the collapse of the housing market in 2008, and it very nearly happened with Trump personally, and is still true of much of the corruption by people in his administration.
In the end, not only were all the Nazi supporters largely forgotten, so were the people fought so hard to hold them accountable.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Antisemitism
Minor: Violence