“Historical Fascism as a Global System: **Alliances, Interactions and Entanglements,”**Online/Onsite Convention, Central European University PU, Vienna, 3-5 December 2021

Fourth Convention of the International Association for Comparative Fascist Studies (ComFas, www.comfas.org)

Conveners: Constantin Iordachi (CEU), Aristotle Kallis (Keele University), Antonio Costa Pinto (Institute of Social science, University of Lisbon), and Sven Reichardt (University of Konstanz).

Event Rationale Fascism was a transnational political ideology and system of rule. There were fascist movements in almost all European and Latin American countries, and in a sum of other countries around the globe, and a number of authoritarian regimes who rejected the revolutionary dynamic of fascism but were visibly indebted in their ‘style’ of rule by Fascist Italy and the Third Reich. Yet, so far, fascism has been approached and analyzed predominantly at national or, at best, at European levels. There is a pressing need for global approaches that explore the interactions, exchanges, diffusion processes, and forms of cooperation among fascist individuals, networks, movements, or regimes within the larger “family of authoritarianisms.”

The Fourth Convention of the International Association for Comparative Fascist Studies (COMFAS) aims at exploring the complex web of interactions, exchanges and histoires croisées between fascist movements, parties, and regimes at regional and global levels between 1919 and 1945. We invite comparative, transnational, or single case-study contributions exploring topics such as:

• The transnational circulation of fascist ideas and personal contacts
• Forms of cooperation among fascist movements and regimes
• Fascist international organizations and transnational networks
• ‘Centres’ and ‘peripheries’ of global fascism
• Axis Powers: economic, cultural and military cooperation and exchanges both within Europe and between Europe and Japan
• Subaltern fascisms and relationship between satellite countries and collaborationist movements and the Axis/occupying power
• Modes and mechanisms of transnational fascist propaganda
• Death and sacrifice as symbolic themes in fascist public discourse and propaganda
• Fascist warfare as a generic phenomenon
• Violent repression under fascist regimes
• Global interactions between fascists and anti-fascists

Global interactions among fascists in the post-1945 period A main aim of the Convention is to bridge historiographies and current research on fascism (broadly defined) in and across continents, in order to help foster synergies and cross-fertilization.  Scholars interested in attending or contributing to the conference should send a mail with an abstract, short bio and contact information to [email protected] no later than 30 June 2021. We welcome individual papers as well as panel proposals. Conference participation is free for COMFAS members (see our Membership Policy and application form). For non-members, a participation fee of € 75 applies. Conference participants will be invited to submit revised versions of their papers for publication in an edited volume and in the journal Fascism.

www.comfas.org

Fascism. Journal of Comparative Fascist Studies