The 80th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz was marked by televised ceremonies at the mass death camp and statements from governments and politicians.
People everywhere express revulsion and condemnation of the murderous actions of the Nazis. Yet very little is said in the media or by politicians about the causes of the holocaust, and why Hitler was able to take power in Germany, crushing the once powerful workers’ movement, in the first place. The mainstream media barely discusses the role of the capitalist governments and ruling classes in Europe and the US, which did next to nothing to try to bring an end to the horrors of Auschwitz and other mass killings of innocent civilians by Nazis and their collaborators during WW2.
Below are links to two articles by Tony Mulhearn and Robert Bechert from our archives (written during the 60th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz in 2005) that examine the key issues that led to the horror of Nazism and how the workers’ movement needs to be always ready to resist fascism and the far right.
This is followed by an article by Tom Baldwin, ‘What is fascism’, first published in 2024. The final link is to Leon Trotsky’s classic pamphlet, ‘Fascism: What is it and how to fight it’.
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history: The Holocaust – who was to blame? |