EFFORTPOST Fascism in South Africa - Eugene Terre'Blanche and the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging [Part One]

Greetings. I hope you are well. I've been doing a lot of research on fascism lately and I've been left utterly terrified. I can see the power the political ideology has thanks to its reliance on a palingenetic rebirth myth that is very effective at uniting people and bringing them under a charismatic strong man. This shouldn't be surprising, as human beings think in terms of stories, so if you're able to tell a good story and piece together archetypes in aesthetically pleasing ways, you can make billions or rule a nation.

The problem with fascism is that it brings with it war, violence, and the death of human rights. If fascism were to take root again in the West, it could lead to another World War and this would affect everyone. I don't want mass death, nor do I want to be conscripted into the military. I'm scared of what will happen to BIPOCs, LGBT folks, and immigrants in such a scenario. The third world isn't safe either, there are dictatorships in Africa with strong militaries and these nations are teetering close to fascism, including countries like Eritrea. The Second Congo War is just a taste of how deadly things can get, as this war led to over 5.4 million deaths within 4 years, the deadliest war since WW2.

South Africa isn't exempt from the threat of fascism and there have been very active fascist parties in the country. This makes me so, so scared because I don't want civil war. Our government has enough problems to deal with. Consequently, I believe that this is the most important longpost I have ever written. Within it, I'd like to outline what fascism is and how it took root in South Africa and almost collapsed democracy before it started.

This is the first part of a two-part series. In this post we'll look into the background of the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging and in the next post we'll delve into the life and death of Eugene Terre'Blanche.

Before we begin, I'd like you to complete this poll.

Do you believe your country is currently at risk of fascism?

What is Fascism?

I have outlined a brief definition of fascism in a previous post, but I'd like to redefine it here in a little more detail. The first instance of fascism can be found in 20th-century Italy under the regime of Benito Mussolini. Benito was inspired by the works of Nietzsche and Georges Sorel. The movement arose while Itality was going through political and economic hardships. Mussolini, after returning from war, believed Italy needed a dictator to lead the nation to greatness. To do this, he would need a myth to unify the people.

He coined the term Fascist which he derived from the Latin term "Fasces" which refers to a bundle of wood. Individually, each piece of wood can be broken with ease. However, when they are bundled together, they become unbreakable.

Pictured above is the Italian fascist symbol used by Italian fascist uniforms. Mussolini rose to power in Italy thanks to his energetic speeches and his ability to tune into the anxieties of the masses and exploit them. For the sake of time, I won't go deep into the history of Mussolini's rise to power, but it is important to know that by 1925, he was the country's dictator and he enjoyed widespread support.

Fascism was exported to Italy's colonies, including Eritrea, which may explain the far-right, dictatorial bend the country has to this day (it is often termed the North Korea of Africa). It also spread through Europe, eventually reaching Germany where Adolf Hitler would establish a dictatorship of his own. When fascism is mentioned, Nazi Germany is usually what comes to mind first. This shouldn't be a shock, as the Third Reich is easily the most powerful fascistic State the world has ever seen. If we are lucky, fascists will NEVER acquire that much power ever again.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Never_again

Hitler was directly inspired by Mussolini, though he also drew from philosophers like Nietzsche and scientists like Charles Darwin to advocate for social Darwinism and eugenics. Hitler was also strongly anti-semitic, a position which Mussolini would also adopt in Italy. With this said, hatred of Jewish people isn't the defining characteristic of fascism. In fact, as Israel is proving, it is possible to have a fascistic State that isn't anti-semitic at all. This raises an important question - what makes a fascist?

How to Identify Fascism

Defining fascism is no easy task, and it is among the hardest political ideologies to adequately categorize. We know it is right-wing, authoritarian, and ultra-nationalistic, but other political movements have these traits as well. Saudi Arabia would be a good example of a country that is right-wing, authoritarian, and ultra-nationalistic but not quite fascist. After doing some research, I've identified the following as the key traits of fascism. If you think I've left anything out or gotten anything wrong, I'd like to hear it. It is important to note that while a nation can exhibit some of these traits and not be a fascist nation, but when they occur altogether, the word fascism starts becoming more appropriate to use.

1. Support of political violence

Unlike liberal movements that were gaining popularity in the 20th century, fascists do not believe that violence is inherently bad and it is viewed as a healthy part of political life. This viewpoint is in part inspired by ideas of social Darwinism which championed the concept of the "survival of the fittest". Hence, it was only right that the strong should subjugate the weak. Violence is also the means by which social hierarchies are reified. I'll touch on it more in the next point, but violence is also an integral part of fascist masculinity. Violence is used to eliminate opposition, undermine democracy, force people into compliance, and expand the borders of the nation.

2. Support of strict gender roles and social hierarchies

As I've stated, fascists believe in social hierarchies, and that some people are more deserving of life and power than others. In Nazi Germany, this viewpoint led to the mass involuntary euthanasia of huge swaths of the population that were disabled either mentally or physically. The most appalling example of this can be found with Germany's Aktion T4 program that claimed up to 300,000 lives.

There are also strict gender hierarchies in fascist nations. Fascism generally takes on a patriarchal shape with a "strong man" leading the nation. Women are expected to remain subservient and to serve a reproductive and domestic role in society. In contrast, men are expected to take to the frontlines of the army and participate in violence and war for the sake of the greatness of the nation. For this reason, you'd be hard-pressed to name a female fascist leader.

3. Belief in a palingenetic rebirth myth

This is perhaps the most important aspect of fascism. The fascist leader will convince the people that they were once a great nation but they have been subverted by outside forces i.e. Jews, communists, immigrants, liberals, etc. The populist fascist leader claims that they are the only ones who can restore the greatness of the nation and rescue the people from economic and political hardships, as well as from the threat of decadence and degeneracy. The palingenetic rebirth myth is reliant on a scapegoat to blame for the nation's decline and to give the people a common enemy to unite against.

4. Opposition to any initiatives or institutions that are racially, ethnically, or religiously diverse

The fascist leader will often create an "us" vs "them" schism. Those in the in-group are the true inhabitants of the nation while those in the out-group are invaders that dilute the blood of the land. One of the slogans used by Nazi Germany is "blood and soil" which illustrates how the regime tied race and nationality together.

Don't be fooled, however - a fascist nation does not need to be racist. The founder of fascism, Mussolini, stated the following:

Race? It is a feeling, not a reality. Ninety-five percent, at least. Nothing will ever make me believe that biologically pure races can be shown to exist today.

However, he did also create an "us" vs "them" schism by scapegoating communists and Jewish people.

So there you have it - four pillars of fascism. If all four are present in a political system, you may be dealing with a fascist nation. I'd like to discuss a fifth possible pillar - isolationism. It appears that a lot of fascist nations aim for an autarkic economy and espouse ideas of isolationism and strong borders. The reason why I do not add this as a pillar of fascism is because scholars generally agree that there is no economic system that is essential to fascism. A sixth possible pillar concerns the use of lies and irrationality. This is seen with both Mussolini and Hitler but I hesitate to add it as an essential element of fascism because quite frankly all politicians lie - it's just a matter of degrees.

The nature of fascism is that it strives to gain power. Consequently, it manifests in varied ways depending on the context. This can make it hard to determine when a nation is fascistic. This has become increasingly true in the modern world where wannabee dictators are aware of the stink of fascism and therefore cloak their ideology using more palatable terms such as "nationalism" and preach about the restoration of "law and order". This isn't always the case, especially with the group we're going to look at today - the Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging, also known as the AWB.

Apartheid in South Africa

I'm sure the topic needs no introduction, but I'll quickly define apartheid. It was a system implemented in South Africa from 1948 to 1991, and it was led by the National Party, which was an Afrikaner ethnic nationalist party.

Pictured above is the National Party flag and the apartheid South African flag. In short, apartheid is a system predicated on institutionalized racial segregation, and it favoured the White minority. Segregation was achieved through forced removals and the creation of townships for Blacks, which had the secondary effect of creating a cheap source of labour. The government also used pass laws that required black South African citizens to carry passes when travelling outside their homelands. This was enforced by Acts such as the Natives (Urban Areas) Act of 1923 and the Black (Natives) Laws Amendment Act of 1952 that deemed urban areas "white". If 'non-whites' were found travelling in urban areas without passes, they faced the possibility of arrest. As you can imagine, interracial marriage was also banned.

The "heyday" of apartheid occurred during the 1960s and 1970s, but the National Party soon began facing strong resistance from the ANC and condemnation from the international community. Consequently, in the 1980s, some of the petty laws of apartheid were repealed, including the law banning interracial s*x and marriage (the Race Relations Act) and the mixing of the races (Group Areas Act). The government also provided limited political rights to Indians and Coloureds, though it wouldn't be until 1994 that South Africa would have its first democratic elections which were won by the ANC, allowing Nelson Mandela to rule the nation.

So, was apartheid South Africa fascist? No. Importantly, the movement lacks a palingenetic rebirth myth. Nevertheless, there were fascist movements bubbling in the country, with the most popular easily being the AWB.

The Birth of the AWB

As apartheid laws were slowly repealed, some liberal White South Africans saw this as progress. However, there were huge swaths of the White population that did not agree with the increasing liberal influences on the country's politics.

One individual who opposed the direction the country was going in was Eugene Terre'Blanche. We won't go too deep into his history (there will be a separate post dedicated to him), but all you need to know for now is that Eugene was born in 1941 and he expressed Christian Afrikaaner nationalist sentiments from a very young age. In 1973, he called a meeting with several men where he complained of the increasing liberal influence in the country under the leadership of Prime Minister B. J. Vorster. He also feared the increasing influence of communism, and as a response, he formed the AWB, with him as the leader.

The AWB is an extremist far-right party that strives to create an independent Afrikaaner state (Boerestaat) separate from the rest of the country. Is the AWB fascistic? Yes! The group is openly fascist, and is strongly influenced by Nazi Germany. Consequently, the group is anti-semitic, and it uses a flag featuring a "triskelion" which is a three-armed swastika.

It also exhibits all four of my pillars of fascism:

1. Support of political violence

The group has used significant violence since its conception, and it remains committed to using violence to bring about the Boerstaat. It is responsible for many terroristic attacks during apartheid, especially in the 80s and 90s. Notable episodes of violence include:

• The Battle of Ventersdorp in 1991 which saw the AWB go head to head with the South African Police Force, and resulted in three deaths

• The Storming of the Kempton Park World Trade Centre in 1993 which involved 3000 members of the group storming the World Trade Center in Kempton Park

• 1994 bombings which resulted in the death of 20 people

The violence did not stop after apartheid ended. In 1996, the group planted a bomb in a grocery store, killing four civilians. Eugene Terre'Blanche also served time in prison for beating a petrol station attendant until he had brain damage (more on that in the next post).

The AWB is violent and aggressive. You can see it in this Louis Theroux clip featuring the documentarian speaking with Eugene who gets annoyed with Louis and squeezes his hand.

2. Support of strict gender roles and social hierarchies

The AWB uses Christianity to justify its gender roles and social hierarchy. They are insistent that the Bible says that Blacks and Whites must live separately, and they wish to bring about a patriarchal, pastoral Boer society.

3. Belief in a palingenetic rebirth myth

This runs strong in the ideology of the AWB. Their fall from grace comes with the Second Boer War which brought about the end of the Boer republics of South Africa. The party promises to restore these republics and bring about the great Boer empire once more.

4. Opposition to any initiatives or institutions that are racially, ethnically, or religiously diverse

It goes without saying that the AWB strikes for a homogenous society. They do not want Blacks, Jews, or communists in their Boer republics. They scapegoat the ANC, immigrants, and Black people as their enemies.

Unfortunately, the AWB had a huge following and at its peak, it boasted a membership of close to half a million. It also caught the attention of the international world, including Nazi sympathisers. Consequently, the group is quite prominent in right-wing literature, especially alternate history fiction novels such as Gun of the South. I've read the book and I quite like it. This is my favorite quotes from the text:

The AWB in Modern Day

Since South Africa became a democratic republic, the AWB has only shrunk in size, but its supporters remain passionate. One of the topics they rally around is the issue of farm killings, which they frame as a white genocide. They will often protest by shutting down highways and waving Old South African flags as well as the Nazi triskelion flag.

The group is still concerned with creating a Boerstaat, and they have their eyes on the Transvaal and the Free State but they haven't had much success claiming land. In one video worth watching, a member of the AWB tries arguing his case on television, and he threatens the Black female, leading to an altercation between him and the male host who warns him not to touch him on his studio.

Perhaps the biggest blow the group has experienced occurred in 2010 when he was killed by two of his own Black farm workers! He was beaten to death with pangas (machetes) and pipes. The murderers claimed that Eugene was buckbreaking them, though no evidence of sodomy was found.

Today, the group has about 5000 members and it is a shell of its former self with no political teeth at all. So is there any reason to fear the AWB?

Does the AWB still pose a threat?

YES! The AWB is actively recruiting the youth and trying to grow its numbers. It is doing this through the use of social media to spread its message. Several scholars are warning about the rise of fascism in South Africa and it's terrifying me! I'm so scared of fascism, I feel I have to do everything in my power to stop it. Unfortunately, all I can do is longpost. If they win, the races will be separated, then I'll NEVER have a white gf.

https://www.cfr.org/blog/transnational-white-supremacist-militancy-thriving-south-africa

The Afrikaner Weerstandsbeweging (Afrikaner Resistance Movement), founded in 1973 by noted white supremacist Eugène Terre'Blanche, also remains active today. The group apparently boasts around 5,000 members, and in 2010, members of the group were arrested for plans to attack Black townships in the wake of the murder of Terre'Blanche—which some claimed was racially motivated. The plotters, based in Pretoria, had also threatened foreigners and players traveling to the country for the 2010 World Cup. And in 2002, a far-right group calling itself the "Warriors of the Boer Nation" claimed responsibility for a series of blasts targeting the township of Soweto, in which one woman was killed.

https://www.ru.ac.za/perspective/2012archives/theleftsfailuretoresolveglobalcrisisgivesfascismroom.html

Last week at the 24th Socialist International (SI) congress in Cape Town, a similar warning about the threat of fascism was issued. However, this referred to a global danger. And this week, as the local mining industry faced turmoil, National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) spokesman Lesiba Seshoka also raised the spectre of fascism.

Conclusion

I hope you join me in my next post when I discuss the life and death of Eugene Terre'Blance. It is a long, sometimes funny, but always frightening story. Look, I'm just searching for a way to stop the chuds from winning. I will NOT live in a segregated nation, I will NOT have my vote taken away from me (even if I don't vote), and I will NOT live in a fascist country. Videos like this absolutely frighten me:

I don't know how Americans sleep at night when they have a proto-fascist about to take the wheel. FASCISM BAD!

!africans !nonchuds !effortposters !mayomoment