Graham R (Ed.) - Anarchism - A Documentary History of Libertarian Ideas Volume One - From Anarchy to Anarchism (300 CE to 1939)

4 1 4/ ANARCHISM
tion, the fa scism upon which the industrialists and landowners depend to put pressure
on the workers and peasants to accept lower wages and additional work, the
flscism that is pretty much an umbrella fo r the parasitical and militaristic classes
with their dreams of states of siege and military dictatorships, in short, the fascism of
cudgel, revolver and arson, the one that hopes to surmount the crisis generated by
the war through a preventive counter-revolution, that fa scism is not going to walk
away Il'o m violence and will carry on being what it is, unless it is defeated by a greater
force, It has become an organism and, as such, cannot countenance suicide, no matter
the relative logicality of its situation and the pointlessness of its actions in overall
political and social terms ...
Democracy has been chasing its shadow fo r over a hundred years and devised
a\l sorts of shapes fo r it; but, no matter what the fo rm, the state has remained the
champion of the interests of one class against another, the supporter and ally of the
ruling class against the oppressed classes. Fascism in Italy has been an obvious instance
of this, laying the democratic view of the state to rest once and fo r all ...
When a faction breaches the state's laws. embraces violence as a method and employs
it according to its whims, over and above and in defiance of the law. it is in a state
of rebellion. The state has the wherewithal to steer it back to normality; the violent,
armed and contemptuous violence that it merits. that drowns it in blood, if need be. But
in order to do that it needs to have an interest in so doing and such a terrible undertaking
must hold out the promise of a reward that outweighs the expenditure. Now, insofar
as fa scism usurps the state and relegates it to a secondary position, the state might be induced
to get rid of it; but other, stronger interests and dark dangers will deter it from
taking on a fo rce which, while it may well be a competitor and disrespectful, is yet not its
enemy, not an opponent of its institutions but rather seeks to reinforce them (albeit by
means that run the risk of compromising them) and, above all, champions the same social
interests, the same class privileges over which the state itself mounts guard. Fascism
is an ally of the state, an irksome, demanding, inconvenient, embarrassing and insubordinate
ally-all of these things-but an ally nonetheless. How could the state give serious
thought to destroying it
... It may be that fa scism, albeit moderating certain of its most irksome fe atures
which are offensive to humane fe elings, may survive and consolidate as an instrument
fo r violent compulsion, some sword ofDamocies to dangle constantly over the
heads of the working classes, so that the latter can never be fu lly at ease anywhere,
even within the parameters of the law, and fo rever fearfu l of its rights being violated
by some unforeseen and arbitrary violence.