The Fascist Emergency Playbook and Electoral Fascism
Show Description
In this inaugural episode of the Fascism Barometer, the incredible Ash-lee Woodard Henderson joins Ejeris to discuss how fascists manipulate emergencies and use them to make large jumps in power. They discuss Ejeris's Fascist Emergency Playbook and think through how it connects today. Ash-lee discusses how she's used the framework, what emergencies and power grabs could be on the horizon, and how fascists use elections as power grabs.
About Ash-lee
Ash-lee is an Affrilachian (Black Appalachian) woman from the working class, born and raised in Southeast Tennessee. She was the first Black woman to serve as Co-Executive Director of the Highlander Research & Education Center in New Market, TN. As a member of multiple leadership teams in the Movement for Black Lives (M4BL), Ash-Lee has thrown down on the Vision for Black Lives and the BREATHE Act. Ash-Lee has served on the governance council of the Southern Movement Assembly, the advisory committee of the National Bailout Collective, and is an active leader of The Frontline. She is a long-time activist who has done work in movements fighting for workers, for reproductive justice, for LGBTQUIA+ folks, for environmental justice, and more.
About Ejeris
Ejeris is a political strategist passionate about strengthening liberation movements and building community safety. Ejeris serves as the Fascism Barometer's "movement meteorologist," exploring the impact of fascist movements on communities of color, queer and trans communities, and all marginalized people. Having worked for the past twenty-five years at the intersections of racial justice, LGBTQ liberation, anti-violence, transformative justice, and economic justice movements, Ejeris focuses on creating political and strategic experiments to strengthen social justice movements through the organization Ejerie Labs.
Resources
Episode 1 Listening Guide (pdf download)
Fascist Emergency Playbook (pdf download)
Ejeris Dixon, “Fascists are using COVID-19 to Advance Their Agenda”
Timothy Snyder, “On Tyranny”
Convergence Magazine, “MAGA and Project 2025: Historical Perspectives and Present Dangers”
Mehdi Hasan, “Everything You Need to Know about Project 2025 in 2 Mins” (listen on 0.75 speed!)
Rachel Maddow's Podcast, Ultra
Rachel Maddow's Book, Prequel: An American Fight Against Fascism
See Ash-lee in action at Working Families Party's Mass Calls
Check out the resource hub!
