AFT Book Club: A Conversation with Ruth Ben-Ghiat

Ruth Ben-Ghiat

Ruth Ben-Ghiat is Professor of History and Italian Studies at New York University. She writes about fascism, authoritarianism, and propaganda— and the threats these present to democracies around the world. She is the author or editor of seven books which explore the appeal of strongmen to collaborators and followers, how Fascist regimes use propaganda to construct an alternate reality, and how culture anticipated the collapse of Mussolini’s regime.

Her most recent book, Strongmen: Mussolini to the Present (2020; paperback, 2021), looks at how illiberal leaders use propaganda, corruption, violence, and machismo – and how they can be defeated. It was the first book to examine Trump in the perspective of 100 years of authoritarian history, and the first book to include masculinity as a tool of autocratic rule. In it, she predicted that if he lost the 2020 presidential election, he would not leave office quietly.

Her work has been recognized with Guggenheim, NEH, Fulbright, and other fellowships, a residency at the American Academy in Rome, and a 2023 Maggie and Dan Inouye Distinguished Chair of Democratic Ideals at the University of Hawai’i.