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Dictionary of Genocide - D Ank Unlimited

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FASCISM<br />

144<br />

deterioration <strong>of</strong> the workers themselves. Brought to trial at the end <strong>of</strong> World War II, most<br />

<strong>of</strong> I. G. Farben’s leadership escaped punishment; those who went to prison were all<br />

released by 1951. Compensation was paid to Jewish prisoners, whereas none was made to<br />

non-Jewish prisoners.<br />

Fascism. A political movement born out <strong>of</strong> the intellectual ferment following World<br />

War I, which was strongest in Europe, but had numerous variants in other parts <strong>of</strong> the<br />

world. Fascism reached its peak in the two decades prior to 1945, though it has prevailed<br />

as an important force in many countries since then. Fascism can be characterized as a<br />

movement that defines itself more by what it stands against rather than what it stands for;<br />

hence, during the period between the 1920s and 1940s, it was anticommunist, antiliberal,<br />

anti-Marxist and antiindividualist. Fascism’s only goal was the strengthening <strong>of</strong> the state<br />

over the liberalizing forces that could weaken it, and as a result fascists advocated a strong<br />

central government (depending on local variants, even a one-party state or a dictatorship),<br />

mass obedience, a party army, suppression <strong>of</strong> trade unions and civil liberties groups,<br />

a culture <strong>of</strong> youth glorification, and a rigorous repression <strong>of</strong> dissent. Groups adhering to<br />

fascism attained political <strong>of</strong>fice in a number <strong>of</strong> European countries before 1945, notably<br />

Italy, Portugal, and Spain. It had an impact (sometimes powerfully) on local politics in<br />

France, Austria, Britain, Hungary, Romania, and elsewhere; and fascist movements or parties<br />

also appeared in most other Western democratic countries. Fascism is a right-wing<br />

ideology, but it is not conservative; in its purest form, it can be socially and economically<br />

radical, even revolutionary, while always invoking the ideals <strong>of</strong> a lost “golden age” as<br />

something to which the modern nation should seek to return. By manipulating the organs<br />

<strong>of</strong> the mass media, education, and popular culture to the greater glory <strong>of</strong> the state, fascism<br />

<strong>of</strong>fers many people an emotional anchor at a time <strong>of</strong> increasing social alienation and fragmentation.<br />

Its potential as a genocidal force, however, lay in its tendency toward dictatorship,<br />

its inclusivity <strong>of</strong> all members <strong>of</strong> the nation, its utter rejection <strong>of</strong> those perceived<br />

not to fit into it, its glorification <strong>of</strong> the military, and its rejection <strong>of</strong> individualism and<br />

humanitarian values in favor <strong>of</strong> the sanctification and elevation <strong>of</strong> the state.<br />

Faurisson, Robert (b. 1929). According to numerous Holocaust denialist publications and<br />

web sites, Robert Faurisson is presently Europe’s leading “scholar” <strong>of</strong> the Holocaust denial<br />

movement. From 1974 to 1990 he was a pr<strong>of</strong>essor <strong>of</strong> literature at the University <strong>of</strong> Lyon,<br />

France, but was dismissed because <strong>of</strong> his denial <strong>of</strong> the Holocaust. He has extensive publications<br />

that both question and deny the historical veracity <strong>of</strong> much <strong>of</strong> the Holocaust, including<br />

the gas chambers at Auschwitz. He has been subject to physical attack for his views<br />

which, he claims, are the result <strong>of</strong> those who disagree with him. He continues to write and<br />

lecture in English; much <strong>of</strong> his work has been published in the pseudo-scholarly Journal <strong>of</strong><br />

Historical Review, published by the Institute <strong>of</strong> Historical Review, Newport Beach, California.<br />

Federal Republic <strong>of</strong> Yugoslavia (FRY). The Federal Republic <strong>of</strong> Yugoslavia (FRY) was<br />

the name taken in 1992 by Serbia and Montenegro, two <strong>of</strong> the six former Yugoslavian<br />

republics, following the dissolution <strong>of</strong> Yugoslavia. The FRY was known by that name<br />

between 1992 and 2003, at which point the country changed its name to the Republic <strong>of</strong><br />

Serbia and Montenegro.<br />

Financial Sanctions. Financial sanctions are applied against countries by either the<br />

international community (e.g., the United Nations), regional organizations (e.g., the<br />

European Union), or individual states for what is perceived as egregious behavior by an<br />

individual state. The most common types <strong>of</strong> financial sanctions are those that freeze gov-

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