Virtually every major social movement or political party in the United States over the last 100 years has at some point been called “fascist.” It is still the epithet of choice to deliver against one’s political opponents. But clearly, very few who use the term know much or anything about its meaning.

In this 3-part course, we will examine the history of fascism from its roots in Italy at the turn of the 20th century through the rise of Mussolini’s Fascist Party in the 1920s in Italy and Hitler’s Nazi Party in the 1930s in Germany. We will also explore the many connections between European fascism and Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal in the United States.

Instructors for this course include:

• Lead instructor Thaddeus Russell

• John Foot, Professor of Modern Italian History at the University of Bristol and author of Blood and Power: the Rise and Fall of Italian Fascism

• David Beito, Professor of History at the University of Alabama and author of The New Deal’s War on Civil Rights.

Course sessions include the following:

• May 16: Italian Fascism (with John Foot) (4 pm ET)

• May 22: Nazism (7 pm ET)

• May 29: The New Deal (with David Beito) (7 pm ET)

To join this course, you may purchase it individually for $95 or join Unregistered Academy.