American Gleichschaltung
NOTE: The following is entirely the view of Jessica Coutinho Newey and in no way reflects the views of NECCTheater, Northern Essex Community College administration, or director Brianne Beatrice. These views are entirely my own.
As we discussed at the last rehearsal, Trump has dismissed 18 members of the Kennedy Center board and installed himself as chairman. He also, ironically, chose his former ambassador to Germany to be the interim president. (Interim, meaning that it is not a permanent position). On his social platform, he said, “I am pleased to announce that Ric Grenell will serve as the Interim Executive Director of The Kennedy Center. Ric shares my Vision for a GOLDEN AGE of American Arts and Culture, and will be overseeing the daily operations of the Center. NO MORE DRAG SHOWS, OR OTHER ANTI-AMERICAN PROPAGANDA — ONLY THE BEST. RIC, WELCOME TO SHOW BUSINESS!” (sic).
Why do I say this is ironic? I say this because it seems like it comes right out of the Nazi playbook for something called the Gleichschaltung. This German word roughly translates to 'coordination'. This is a tactic used by a totalitarian state to homogenize a society to reflect what the state wants. It’s a coordinated attack on a society's political, social, and cultural aspects. It serves to define who is “us” and who is “them.”
Trump’s claim that he wants to rid the center of its “woke programming” echoes Hitler’s commentary on “cultural Bolshevism, ”which could “endanger public security and order.” While Gleichschaltung began in 1933, it culminated in 1937, when the Third Reich opened two exhibits. The Great German Art Exhibition exemplified high German art, while the other was a “Degenerate Art” Exhibition. Degenerate art was modern art with artists like Picasso, Matisse, and Van Gogh, but also included many Jewish artists. The exhibit included write-ups about how awful the art was, and included areas that were labeled as "insane."
Some of you may find this view extreme, that this is a slippery slope into full totalitarianism, but take a quick minute to look up how women dressed in the early 70s in Iran before the revolution, and then look at how they are forced to dress now. Take a couple of hours to watch Swing Kids from 1993 and follow the progress of Christian Bale's character. I will note that I haven't seen this flick since the '90s, so I don't remember if it's a good movie, but it left a lasting impression on me about how easy it can be to get wrapped up in a system that isn't actually good for you. Culture wars are a very real aspect of a hostile coup of a government and its society.