The Architecture of U.S. Fascism: Part I

In this two-part series, I excavate the political, racial, and colonial economy of U.S. fascism. Part I presents definitions of both proto-fascism and fascism. I argue that fascism is attendant to the fall of imperialism, which is produced by intractable crises of capital. Thus, domination is not the defining feature of fascism, especially since fascism arrives to power through popular consent and emerges to enforce the empire’s last remaining frontiers of capital accumulation.

I apply the analysis presented in Part I to modern legal documents, including Supreme Court decisions and executive orders. Legal historical methodology exposes rule of law liberalism as fascism’s fellow traveler, not the greatest bulwark against U.S. fascism. I conclude by offering some preliminary remedies to challenge its rise. Part II, which will be published in the Winter 2026 issue of the CUNY Law Review, constructs a preliminary archive of U.S. fascism.