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Title: Mussolini in Power Author: Errico Malatesta Date: 1922 Language: en Topics: fascism, Benito Mussolini Source: Translated on 2020 by João Black from Errico Malatesta, “Il Buon Senso della Rivoluzione,” ed. Giampietro N. Berti: https://www.eleuthera.it/files/materiali/Malatesta_Il_Buon_senso_della_rivoluzione.pdf Notes: Originally published as “Mussolini al potere” in Umanità Nova, November 25th 1922.
To crown a long series of crimes, fascism finally took over the
government.
And Mussolini, the Duce, just to distinguish himself, began by treating
the deputies in parliament as an insolent master would treat stupid and
lazy servants.
Parliament, what was to be “the palladium of freedom”, has given its
measure.
This makes us perfectly indifferent. Between a bully who insults and
threatens, because he feels safe, and a host of cowards who seem to
delight in their abjection, we don’t have to choose. We simply note —
and not without shame — what kind of people are those who dominate us
and whose yoke we cannot escape.
But what is the significance, the scope and the probable result of this
new way of coming to power in the name and service of the king,
violating the constitution that the king had sworn to respect and
defend?
Apart from the poses that would seem Napoleonic, and are instead nothing
but operetta, when they are not acts of a brigand leader, we believe
that nothing will have fundamentally changed, except that, for a certain
time, there will be a greater police pressure against subversives and
the workers. A new edition of Crispi and Pelloux. It is always the old
story of the brigand who becomes a gendarme!
The bourgeoisie, threatened by the rising proletarian tide, unable to
solve the urgent problems caused by the war, unable to defend itself
with the traditional methods of legal repression, found itself lost and
would have greeted with joy any military man who had declared himself
dictator and drowned in blood any attempt to fight back. But in those
moments, in the immediate postwar period, that was too dangerous, and
could precipitate the revolution rather than break it down. In any case,
the savior general did not come out, or only the parody did. Instead,
adventurers came out who, not having found in the subversive parties
sufficient field for their ambitions and appetites, thought of
speculating on the fear of the bourgeoisie by offering them, for an
adequate compensation, the aid of irregular forces which, if sure of
impunity, could indulge in all excesses against workers without directly
compromising the alleged beneficiaries of the violence committed. And
the bourgeoisie accepted, urged and paid their services; the official
government, or at least part of its agents, thought of providing them
with weapons, helping them when they were about to get the worst of an
attack, ensuring their impunity and preventively disarming those who
were to be attacked.
The workers did not know how to oppose violence to violence, because
they had been educated to believe in legality, and because, even when
all illusions had become impossible and the arsons and assassinations
multiplied under the benevolent gaze of authorities, the men they
trusted preached them the patience, the calm, the beauty and wisdom of
getting beaten “heroically” without resisting — and therefore they were
defeated and offended in their possessions, persons, dignity and the
most sacred affections.
Perhaps, when all the workers’ institutions had been destroyed, the
organizations disbanded, the men most disliked and considered most
dangerous killed or imprisoned, or otherwise reduced to impotence, the
bourgeoisie and the government wanted to put a stop to the new
praetorian guards who now aspired to become the masters of those they
had served. But it was too late. Fascists are now the strongest and
intend to get paid for the services rendered... And the bourgeoisie will
pay, naturally seeking to pay for itself on the shoulders of the
proletariat.
In conclusion, increased misery, increased oppression.
As for us, we have only to continue our battle, always full of faith and
enthusiasm.
We know that our path is sown with caltrops, but we chose it consciously
and voluntarily, and we have no reason to abandon it. So let all those
who have a sense of human dignity and compassion, and want to devote
themselves to the struggle for the good of all, know that they must be
prepared for all disappointments, all pains, all sacrifices.
---
Because there is never a lack of those who let themselves be dazzled by
appearances of strength, and always have a kind of secret admiration for
whoever wins, there are also subversives who say that “fascists taught
us how to make a revolution”.
No, fascists have taught us nothing at all.
They made the revolution, if one wants to call it so, with the
permission of the superiors and in their service.
Betraying one’s own friends, denying every day the ideas professed
yesterday, if that suits one’s advantage, putting oneself at the service
of the bosses, ensuring the acquiescence of political and judicial
authorities, having one’s opponents disarmed by the carabinieri and then
attacking them in ten to one, preparing militarily without need to hide,
indeed receiving from the government weapons, means of transport and
military items, and then being called by the king and putting oneself
under the protection of God ... that’s all stuff we could not and would
not want to do. And that’s all stuff that we had foreseen would happen
the day the bourgeoisie felt seriously threatened.
Rather, the advent of fascism should serve as a lesson to legalitarian
socialists, who believed, and alas! still believe, that the bourgeoisie
can be overthrown by means of the votes of half plus one of the
electors, and did not want to believe it when we told them that, if they
ever reached a majority in parliament and wanted — just to make absurd
assumptions — to implement socialism from parliament, they would be
kicked out in the butt!