Understanding the Rise of Dictatorship: History, Tactics, and Citizen Awareness
Throughout human history, tyranny is always a constant threat that rears its ugly head from Hitler and the Nazis to Mussolini and his Brownshirts, to the plethora of dictators of the Roman Empire that fill the history books. With how often a dictator rises, it's good to know the warning signs of a dictatorship rising and what the average citizen in any country can do to prevent them from ever reaching power.
What is a dictator?
During the Roman Empire, a dictator was brought in through the senate to take control during a time of crisis. Once the crisis is averted, the dictator would relinquish his power. However, the definition of a dictator has changed to someone who has absolute control over the state and becomes a tyrant. These modern dictators have no intention of giving the power back to the people and try to remain in power for as long as they can, sometimes decades.
The Power of Propaganda
There is a phrase, “You are not immune to propaganda”. That phrase rings true over the decades of dictators that have used mass media to influence the populace. According to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Adolf Hitler used multiple mediums to spread his message to the German people. The Nazis would take advantage of the emergence of the radio, knowing citizens would sit and listen to what came out of the regime. But it wasn’t radio the Nazis used, the movie industry produced over a thousand films, mixing entertainment with propaganda to ensure higher viewership, and the free press was silenced to keep criticisms at bay. What this creates are people who get sucked in by what they are fed through controlled media, where they are told to get angry and be pointed in a direction where their “true enemy” is.
While propaganda is necessary to control the populace, a dictatorship cannot flourish without its critics getting in the way. That is why pursuing higher education is looked down upon. Terry Schmidt’s article, How Dictators Maintain A Stronghold on Power; A Focus on Africa's Strongmen, references an article list by Robert Reich. There are ten things a dictator does to ensure power. In numbers two and three, they say that cracking down on college students and excluding classes to train in critical thinking are methods used to keep young and educated people disregarded. If they have no education to prove their opinion, their criticisms can be discarded. And if you don’t teach people how essential it is to think critically of the world around you, the dictator will have less resistance.
Class and Ideals
In the book, Dictators and Dictatorships: Understanding authoritarian regimes and their leaders. Two scholars argue how class conflict and ideology can form the support of dictatorships. Hannah Ardent claims, “The rigors of extreme levels of individualism in capitalist societies attract people to totalitarianism as a form of government.” Another scholar, Juan Linz says, “Totalitarianism emerges as a result of class and ideological conflict.” Going back to the list mentioned earlier, step five says, “Citizens should be made economically anxious, frustrated, angry, and insecure. This is a patrimonial ruse that can score a leader points in the media, and at the right time, they come in to save the people by showing how functional they are.” What this shows is how fear is used as a tool against the average citizen. They are made nervous about the future and make the population agitated, allowing the dictator to fix the problem they had a hand in creating. It is how Hitler pointed at the Jews and placed the blame on them for Germany’s Great Depression.
The Desire of Strength
In the article, “Fighting Against Dictatorship”, Manfred F. R. Ketz De Vieres, writes, “Many of the disempowered see in the “strong” man or woman both a reflection of themselves and the promise of a victory over their downtrodden state.” A populace that wishes for the days of their old power can inspire someone to turn those dreams into a reality, no matter what they do to attain it. So when the dictator notices that the people feel weak, they use strength-based imagery and messages to reaffirm to their audience that they are suitable for the position of power. In number eight of Robert Reich’s list that we have discussed, the step says, “The necessity of a good public image is vital. A leader that can present themselves as strong physically and mentally can rally the masses.” An example would be Mussolini creating his Fascist Party, with the word fascio – which means a bundle of rods tied together, symbolizing unity and strength. Mussolini then used this united front would march down the roads of Rome and even attack labor unions and socialist groups. Strength is an attractive trait, it makes one feel secure and feel confident in themselves. While dictators use tactics to make themselves perceived as strong, it is the people who feed into it and wish for that strength in their own lives. The citizen projects their need for strength onto the dictator, who will give them the means to use their newfound vigor however they see fit, including the use of violence.
A dictator will use any means necessary to put themselves on top, whether through manipulation tactics like propaganda or coercion or using force and violence to get their way. They may seem intimidating, but they are weak without their platform. It is important to keep a keen eye and ear on what an upcoming leader says and does and to discern what their intentions are for the future of their respective nation.
Works Cited
The Weapons of Dictatorship: Terror and Propaganda. United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
Kawalya-Tendo, Costantine. (2020). How Dictators Maintain A Stronghold on Power; A Focus on Africa's Strongmen. 10.13140/RG.2.2.35473.79206.
Ezrow, N. M., & Frantz, E. (2011). Dictators and dictatorships: Understanding authoritarian regimes and their leaders. A&C Black.
Manfred F. R. Ketz De Vieres. (2018). Fighting Against Dictatorship | INSEAD Knowledge
