Anti-Fascist Economics

Democracy cannot flourish without an economic reset. Anti-Fascist Economics is a powerful book as the failure of neoliberalism has paved the way for the rise of neonationalism and authoritarianism. A must-read – Thomas Piketty
Isabella Weber’s excellent new book makes an urgent case that defending democracy is, at its heart, an economic question. Recognizing that markets alone cannot secure a dignified life for all, she cuts through the false dichotomy between taming inflation and protecting livelihoods to offer a bold alternative: an economics of essentials that treats access to housing, food, energy, and care as the material foundation of freedom—and of democracy itself. Anti-Fascist Economics is a well-written and necessary book for anyone who believes the economy must deliver for the benefit of all – Mariana Mazzucato
For all their problems, our troubled times have one merit: they force us to challenge orthodoxy, reconnect with history, and invent new models for the future. In this page-turning book, blending the history of ideas with economic analysis, Isabella Weber maps out her vision for a new economic model centred on the conditions for a dignified life. A must-read – Gabriel Zucman
One of the twenty-first century’s most exciting economic thinkers comes down from the mountain with a program to restore democracy that will resonate on every continent—a wonderful book by a marvelous mind – Zachary Carter
In Anti-Fascist Economics, Isabella Weber restores to economics its role in promoting dignity, arguing that markets should serve humans rather than rule over them. Written with the rigour of the scholar and the passion of the activist, the book is historically nuanced, showing how fascism was enabled by the collusion between economic elites and a hierarchical mindset hostile to democratic development, with free-market dogmatism degenerating into the rule of the fittest. But it is also forward-looking, and, strangely, hopeful. Anti-Fascist Economics shows us the path not just away from all too familiar horror but toward a feasible, different, better world – Lea Ypi
When inflation woke from its decades-long slumber in 2021, Isabella Weber exploded onto the scene with a fearless critique of mainstream economics. Now she’s back with an unapologetic account of what’s at stake for humanity and democracy if we fail to learn the lessons of the past. Drawing on history and evidence, she shows why the fight against inflation and the fight against fascism turn out to be the same fight, and what it will take to defeat both threats – Stephanie Kelton
This great book from the extraordinary Isabella Weber sets a course for positive economic change and will do so for many years. Indeed the effects are already being felt, from New York City to Germany and many points between. There has been nothing quite so clear, on-point, and powerful for at least a generation – James K. Galbraith
As a public intellectual, Isabella Weber has already shifted the Overton Window on progressive economic policy, making previously taboo policies thinkable. In this book, she recounts her experiences as a fearless insurgent in a conservative field and outlines a transformative program responsive not to the corporate bottom line but to people’s everyday needs – Quinn Slobodian
In this extraordinarily timely and brilliant book, Isabella Weber warns us about blindly accepting subordination to other people in politics or to the markets in economics. An economy organized around affordable provision of essential goods for all is the practical program on which, Weber argues, new anti-fascist economics should be built – Branko Milanovic
Sinclair Lewis’s cleverly titled 1935 novel It Can’t Happen Here was a fictionalized account of the conditions that could make fascism prevail in America. Isabella Weber’s new book demonstrates the horrific ‘it’ is happening here today. Weber argues that economic policies that produced a mix of episodic high inflation, rising inequality, white racial status anxiety, wars of aggression, and financial instability—disturbingly parallel with developments in pre–World War II Germany—have contributed to the flowering of totalitarian corporatism in the United States. Fortunately, she does not leave us in complete despair; she also details an alternative economic program that, if put in place, may stand as a barrier to the full consolidation of fascism on American soil. She suitably labels such a program ‘anti-fascist economics – William A. Darity Jr.
We are at a crossroads. As the tyranny of neoliberal market absolutism has produced staggering social inequality and widespread economic insecurity, it has undermined central pillars of democratic governance. Professing answers to this crisis, a new crop of right-wing extremists are beginning to reshape the world. Yet, as Isabella Weber shows in her brilliant, and faced-paced analysis, another future is possible. Her wake-up call is an openings salvo in an urgently needed conversation: How to build a future of freedom, prosperity and democracy on the ruins of the neoliberal edifice. A must read for anyone concerned with our economic and political future, the book we need at this moment – Sven Beckert
Trumpian economics is failing us, just as neoliberalism did. Isabella Weber lays out a bold vision, with firm historical and theoretical foundations, that represents a radical departure for economic policy. Her book is an urgent plea to reconfigure economic policy to save our democracies – Dani Rodrik
Weber’s bold ideas are helping shift the economic paradigm – Elizabeth Warren, TIME100 Next
Isabella Weber can make a good claim to being one of the more influential economists of the past few years, and certainly one of the most prescient * Prospect, The World’s Top Thinkers 2024 *

Isabella Weber is an associate professor of economics at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and an associate in research at the Fairbank Center, Harvard University.

She is the author of the prize-winning How China Escaped Shock Therapy. Her work focuses on policy responses to inflation, and she has advised policymakers in the US, Germany, Europe, and Latin America.

Weber was recognized by TIME Magazine on their 100 Next list.

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