Even though Hitler and the Nazis gained power through the democratic process, they never achieved majority support before turning Germany into a totalitarian state. Even after outlawing their most significant political rival, the Communist Party, they got less than 50% of the vote in the mid ‘30s.
They gained total control gradually. At first they focused on silencing dissent. They took control of the media. Germans only heard happy news. Then they started sending out the secret police in the middle of the night. Those who questioned the Nazis received a knock on the door at three in the morning when they were at their most vulnerable, and when their neighbors were asleep. The Nazis began to threaten the wives, husbands, children, parents and friends of those who refused to toe the line.
People stopped talking. They stopped criticizing. They stopped making jokes. So if you were troubled by Nazi policy, you were isolated. Who could you tell? You didn’t know who might be sympathetic or who might turn you in.
The people who did not support the Nazis were forced into the closet. LGBTs know something about the closet, and many of us know the joy of coming out despite the risk.
We can resist fascist impulses in our own society by refusing to be silent, by standing up and sticking together.
I know how you feel. One of the things that helps me to be hopeful is the women's march last weekend. Affiliating with resistance groups also helps. It seems like many people have just awoken to what is happening and are taking action.
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