Compared With How We've Ducked It In

Some 2,800 Americans Went To Spain [during The Spanish Civil War], And It Was, By Far, The Largest Number Of Americans Before Or Since Who've Ever Joined Somebody Else's Civil War. I Think They Were Primarily People Who Were Deeply Alarmed By The Menace Of Fascism. They Saw This On The Horizon. I Quote One Volunteer, Maury Colow Of New York, Who Said, "for Us It Was Never Franco, It Was Always Hitler."

The Late Nadine Gordimer In South Africa, For Example, Had A Wonderful Ability To Get Her Country's Injustices And Contradictions Down On Paper. Ditto For Her Countryman The Great Playwright Athol Fugard.

I Can Certainly Sympathize With Writers Who Don't Want To Put Themselves Or Their Loved Ones At Risk.

You Know, By 1936, Hitler Was Already Talking Very Loudly About His Desire To Expand To The East. Mussolini, In 1935, Went And Then In The Next Year, Conquered Ethiopia, Acquiring Himself A Colony. So People At The Time Really Saw Fascism Not Just As An Evil But As An Aggressive Evil That Seemed To Be Spreading.

Speaking Of Germany In 1933, I Don't Think You Can Remove Yourself From Politics When, In So Many Countries - The United States, Poland, Hungary, And Many Others - You've Got Politicians In Power Or Vying For Power Who Are Taking Tactics And Elements Of Their Appeal From The Playbook Of Fascism.