There is a lot of good and evil in the current political climate throughout the U.S. and the world. There are only two sides and if you are not with one, you are for the other. No other options. 

This is seen in our history too, as throughout the mid-1900s it was democracy versus communism, with no options to be anywhere in the middle. Wars were fought and millions perished because of this stark division in political ideals. 

While I am not here to defend communism in any way, I do think it is wrongly accused of causing extreme violence when other factors, including the figureheads of each nation are truly to blame. 

One of the first common mistakes is misinterpreting communism for Nazism when they share few qualities other than being defined as political theories. Communism as a social structure values all people as workers and as equals while Nazism is heavily reliant on ideas of antisemitism and gender inequality. While Nazism can be directly correlated to the genocide of Jewish and other non-Aryan peoples, communism cannot be fairly blamed for the actions of the political leaders in countries that utilize it.

However, in the U.S. it is not unusual for us to be taught that communism is the root of the evil that took place during its reign in the 20th century. Instead, Stalinism, Leninism and, again, Nazism should be held responsible for the millions of deaths that occurred due to the founders of each respective theory. Simply because Stalin and Lenin practiced communism does not mean that it should be held responsible for all their choices. 

We do not blame democracy for the tragedies in this country, we blame leaders and their policies. We do not blame democracy for our loss of the Vietnam War, we blame Nixon and the tactics of the Vietnamese soldiers. It would seem silly to say that democracy and capitalism fueled our loss, but the inverse of saying communism was the cause is normalized. 

During the Cold War, attacking communism was used as a political weapon to separate us from “the other” and fuel patriotism within the U.S. Again, this is seen today as we teach children from a young age that our capitalistic society is the golden standard and communism is a horrible thing that destroyed The Soviet Union and enslaved citizens who fell victim to it. 

I do not think that the majority of Americans, including myself, comprehend communism in the correct way, which is due to how we are taught to view it: as the enemy. The terminology we use to educate about communism needs to change, as the real evil of Nazism, Stalinism and Leninism need to be held accountable for the terror they caused. Acknowledging the difference between these political ideologies will help people more accurately understand history and our place within it. 

Photo via Darya Sannikova via Pexels