Bolsonaro Uses Same Fascist Tactics As Trump, Says Yale Professor

[Judi Lynn]

To philosopher Jason Stanley, candidate vilifies minorities and sells himself as the solution to the country's problems

Oct.4.2018 10:49AM

Danielle Brant
NOVA YORK

Presidential frontrunner Jair Bolsonaro (PSL) uses more tactics associated to fascism than American president Donald Trump, says Jason Stanley, author of a recent book called "How fascism works: the politics of us and them".

To Stanley, who taught at the University of Michigan (2000-2004) and Cornell (1995-2000) and currently is a faculty member at Yale University, what differentiates the two is that the Brazilian politician appears to be more favorable to violence.

The philosopher started to study fascism through the propaganda and linguistics perspectives. He questions Bolsonaro as a democratic leader, since he makes statements directly opposed to democracy, like saying he won't recognize an election result that is not his victory - something he later minimized. "The only reality a fascist sees is his or her own," he says.

Is Bolsonaro the only candidate where you see these traits?

Stanley - I don't know much [about Brazil]. But I know that Bolsonaro attacks people different than him, particularly racial minorities. He calls them criminals. It's always like that. In Germany, Jews were lazy and criminals. In the US, racists say that blacks are lazy and criminals. Bolsonaro says that Brazilian blacks are lazy. Power and strength go together within a group, like white people. They are dominant, so they are the winners. All the rest is worthless. This is fascism: the idea that the hated group - blacks, for example - are criminal and violent.

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