Published: 22 July 2022
Last updated: 5 March 2024
New Zealand Police produce evidence that American Proud Boys are crypto-fascists with strong elements of white nationalist and antisemitic ideologies.
Fascism is an ideology that is difficult to specifically define and tends to slip between a number of ideological talking points as suits the purposes of an adherent or group.
Experts have, however, identified a number of core tenets or characteristics that typically provide definition to fascist movements or groups.
These can include ethnonationalism (the belief that a nation-state can only be inhabited by "natives" of a country or place), authoritarianism and the veneration of the dictator or strongman, forcible suppression of opposition and dissent (i.e. opposition to democratic participation), the application of staunch rules regarding traditional gender roles, and the rejection of modernity (which is viewed as depraved or weak).
In contrast to other extremist groups active in the US, and consistent with the "slippery" nature of fascism, the American Proud Boys (APB) do not have a single ideological framework or reference point. Instead, they deploy a mosaic of overlapping ideological components intended to obscure the group’s fascism and thereby increase their appeal to a broader audience of American men.
This tactic, whereby an extremist group or individual deliberately obfuscates their fascist worldview in order to evade and/or minimise detection by "normal" people and authorities, to minimise the severity of the repercussions of a group’s actions, and to provide plausible deniability to members, is called crypto-fascism.
Despite the rhetorical and optical smokescreens put up by APB leadership, many members are more open about their white nationalism, extreme racism, antisemitism, and Islamophobia.
The adoption of crypto-fascism by the APB is consistent with a late 2010s debate within the US-based extremist right-wing regarding the "optics" (i.e. public perception) of the nascent movement.
