ABSTRACT
Zimbabwe in the 2000s (and arguably in the present) exemplified the use of fascist strategies by a ‘conservative elite’ to maintain their privileged control of the state and the economy. Following Miller-Idriss’ argument of populism as ‘less an ideology than a rhetorical strategy’, and Mudde’s highlighting of populism as a ‘thin ideology’ that easily attaches itself to other ideologies, this chapter offers a reading of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) to argue against a binary logic that inhibits the confrontation of fascism in the African context. It examines authoritarianism and populism in Africa before homing in on versions of African fascism in Uganda and Zimbabwe. African fascism is then briefly considered in relation to some salient observations on fascism elsewhere. The discussion then moves to an analysis of the EFF in relation to the features of African fascism in Uganda and Zimbabwe.
