Political and Intellectual Lineages of Southern African Anti-Fascism

ABSTRACT The article is the introduction to a special issue of the South African Historical Journal on anti-fascism. It starts by explaining the contemporary relevance of the subject. It then places Southern Africa within the contemporary historiographical debates on anti-fascism. The article provides a broad overview of the history of the anti-fascist political ideas and practice within the region. It examines in detail both the impact of ‘historical’ anti-fascism in the era of Mussolini, Hitler and Franco, and how notions of anti-fascism subsequently impacted on the national liberation movements and in the post-colonial era.