[Ads-l] Fascism in America

Mon Apr 1 05:34:00 UTC 2024

A German-language meme on Twitter credits the line, that when fascism returns it will be as anti-fasism, to an Italian writer named Ignazio Silone.

https://twitter.com/NinaHallmann/status/1673736403971194899

________________________________
From: American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU> on behalf of Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
Sent: Sunday, March 31, 2024 3:58:06 AM
To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Subject: Re: Fascism in America

---------------------- Information from the mail header -----------------------
Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
Poster:       Jonathan Lighter <wuxxmupp2000 at GMAIL.COM>
Subject:      Re: Fascism in America
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Snopes too has failed to find any ex. of this in the works of Sinclair
Lewis. The earliest I've found of the more or less  precise quote is in a
letter from a reader in Grass Lake, Mich.:

2006 _Ann Arbor News_  (Feb. 6) B6 : "When fascism comes to America, it
will be wrapped in the flag and carrying the cross." This insightful quote
is from a book written in 1935 by Sinclair Lewis entitled "It Can't Happen
Here."

(The writer believed that George W. Bush was a fascist.)

JL

On Fri, Aug 10, 2012 at 12:58=E2=80=AFAM Garson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at gm=
ail.com>
wrote:

> ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> Poster:       Garson O'Toole <adsgarsonotoole at GMAIL.COM>
> Subject:      Re: Fascism in America
>
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
------
>
> Thanks for your response, Fred. The 1944 YBQ cite for Huey Long is
> valuable. When I explored this topic previously I located some earlier
> cites for Long. However, every cite I located that credited Long
> appeared after his death on September 10, 1935. (Of course, some
> legitimate quotations do appear after death, e.g., in posthumously
> published correspondence.)
>
> Maybe some list member can help to verify this circa 1937 cite on
> paper or microfilm.
>
> Circa: 1937, The Advocate: America's Jewish journal, Volumes 93-94, GB
> and HathiTrust Page 71. [This periodical according to HathiTrust was
> called "The Reform Advocate" in 1922 and based in Chicago, Illinois]
> (Google Books snippet view; Data may be inaccurate)
>
> HathiTrust link: http://hdl.handle.net/2027/mdp.39015080183810
>
> [Begin extracted text]
> The late Huey Long once observed that if fascism came to America, it
> would come disguised as an anti-fascist movement. The full import of
> Long's insight has been realized in the last two weeks in the varied
> treatment accorded the anti-fascist declarations of three men
> prominent in public affairs. The men were Senator William E. Borah,
> Bishop William T. Manning, and America's ambassador to Germany,
> William E. Dodd.
> [End extracted text]
>
> Here is some evidence in October 1938.
>
> Cite: 1938 October 11, The Owosso Argus-Press, Section: Editorial, If
> Fascism Comes, Page 4, Column 1, Owosso, Michigan. (Google News
> Archive)
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> Huey Long once remarked that America probably would have Fascism some
> day, but, he added, "when we get it we won't call it Fascism we'll
> call it anti-Fascism." And Huey's wise-crack is much more worth
> remembering than are the revelations of the Dies committee.
> [End excerpt]
>
> Life magazine printed a version of the quote attributed to Long in 1939.
>
> Cite: 1939 March 6, LIFE, Fascism in America: Like Communism It
> Masquerades as Americanism, Some of the Voices of Hate, Start Page 57,
> Quote Page 60, Column 1, Published by Time Inc, New York. (Google
> Books full view)
>
> [Begin excerpt]
> The late Huey P. Long, who knew all the tricks of the dissembling
> demagog, was once asked: "Do you think we will ever have Fascism in
> America?"
>   Said the Kingfish: "Sure, only we'll call it anti-Fascism."
> [End excerpt]
>
> Garson
>
> On Thu, Aug 9, 2012 at 8:38 PM, Shapiro, Fred <fred.shapiro at yale.edu>
> wrote:
> > ---------------------- Information from the mail header
> -----------------------
> > Sender:       American Dialect Society <ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU>
> > Poster:       "Shapiro, Fred" <fred.shapiro at YALE.EDU>
> > Subject:      Re: Fascism in America
> >
> -------------------------------------------------------------------------=
------
> >
> > According to the Yale Book of Quotations, Bennett Cerf's book Try and
> Stop Me (1944) attributes the following to Huey Long, being asked whether
> he thought the United States would ever have fascism: "Sure we will, only
> _we'll_ call it anti-fascism!"
> >
> > Fred Shapiro
> >
> >
> >
> > ________________________________________
> > From: American Dialect Society [ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU] on behalf of
> David A. Daniel [dad at POKERWIZ.COM]
> > Sent: Thursday, August 09, 2012 11:17 AM
> > To: ADS-L at LISTSERV.UGA.EDU
> > Subject: Fascism in America
> >
> > "When Fascism comes to America, it will be wrapped in the flag and
> carrying
> > a cross." This has been floating around the Internet lately, attributed
> to
> > Sinclair Lewis, which is apparently bogus as to the letter if not to th=
e
> > spirit. Does anyone have more information on this? (If this is somewher=
e
> in
> > the archives, sorry, but I didn't find it.)
> > DAD
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
> >
> > ------------------------------------------------------------
> > The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>
> ------------------------------------------------------------
> The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org
>

--=20
"If the truth is half as bad as I think it is, you can't handle the truth."

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org

------------------------------------------------------------
The American Dialect Society - http://www.americandialect.org