It Can't Happen Here

"It Can’t Happen Here gives us a window into an aspect of the 1930s that is often forgotten. Roosevelt was elected during a period when authoritarianism was on the rise around the world, with the elevation of Adolf Hitler and the consolidation of Mussolini’s powers. Popular sentiment was not uniformly behind the New Deal and Franklin Roosevelt. In fact, by 1935 FDR was facing serious challenges, both from the right and from the left. It was a time when many Americans—including leading pundits like Walter Lippmann—worried that democracy was failing and demagogues could easily gain a grip on power. That’s why the Sinclair Lewis book It Can’t Happen Here is so useful. Based loosely on Adolf Hitler’s rise, it shows in a frightening way how a democratic republic like America can fall prey to authoritarianism. It tells the story through the eyes of a small-town New England journalist who watches as demagogues seize control of different organs of society and as citizens swallow disinformation about what is happening when they are fed unrealistic promises—that never materialize—of a better future. It’s a novel that is worth revisiting to remember the atmosphere in America when Roosevelt was elected. And it remains relevant today, as we can see in Russia and with Donald Trump’s continued control of the Republican Party."