ABSTRACT
In establishing his “disturbance theory” of American political participation, the political scientist David Truman argued that citizens mobilize to meet perceived threats to their well-being. In line with disturbance theory, this final chapter examines the social movements that arise to challenge the rising neofascistic movement in the mid-to-late 2010s and onward. Among these challenges, I and my co-author for this chapter explore the anti-Trump protests of 2017; #MeToo; Black Lives Matter; Antifa; and the 2020 electoral surge against Trump.
These movements provide lessons for how to combat neofascistic politics. The anti-Trump protests, #MeToo, and Black Lives Matter, although not explicitly anti-fascist, helped to mainstream opposition to neofascistic politics. The chapter also examines Antifa’s role in fighting neofascists. While the movement failed to build a mass groundswell against the “alt-right,” it altered political discourse by spotlighting the threat of rightwing extremism. Finally, we discuss the 2020 election and the mass mobilization of voters in putting an end to the Trump administration and its rising neofascistic threat. We document how anti-racist politics and Covid-19 were primary factors in Trump’s defeat, as evidenced by national exit polling data.
