When people hear the word “fascism” they usually think of Hitler, and how he ruled Germany in a cruel way. Many people are talking about the situation in Ukraine, and the violence going on there. What many don’t know is that it’s the latest form of fascism. This paper will inform readers on fascism, the situation taking place in Ukraine, and the fascism in Ukraine.

Fascism is socialism with a capitalist veneer, it’s an authoritarian and nationalistic right-wing system of government and social organization. The best example of fascism was Nazi Germany. Fascism is when the government owns all property except in name. It allows citizens to pretend they own property, but they have to use it by following the rules of the government. Fascism resembles communism, it has a record of slaughter, starvation, and destruction of wealth.

A very big discussion that has been talked about all over the news is the situation in Ukraine. The violence in the streets and the angry protestors all started because the Ukrainian president refused to sign a trade agreement with the European Union. Many political observers saw this as a step towards European integration. The protests started off peacefully and then eventually the protestors came armed with weapons and explosives. They unleashed brutal violence on police and anyone they suspected was of pro-government sympathies. This situation in Ukraine is very dangerous because it represents a political conflagration that could easily tear the country apart.

The violence in Ukraine is way more than protestor’s anger against the government; it is the latest example of the rise of the worst form of fascism that Europe has seen since the fall of the Third Reich. The students were the first to protest against the regime, because they thought of themselves as Europeans and wished for themselves a life. Eventually the Ukraine government tried to end the protests by passing a series of laws, without following normal procedure. The laws ended freedom of speech and assembly and removed the remaining checks on executive authority. This was supposed to turn Ukraine into a dictatorship, but it failed. The Ukrainian president lost support and the battles in the streets still continue.

The fascism taking place in Ukraine needs to be recognized and put to an end before it’s too late. There are plenty of things that we as Americans can do to help stop it, but we won’t. Europe needs to realize how serious this violence is before there is no longer anything they can do about it.