crypto-fascist

American  

[krip-toh-fash-ist] / ˌkrɪp toʊˈfæʃ ɪst /

Or cryptofascist

adjective

1. secretly supporting, affiliated with, or conforming to fascism.

   Their policy of conducting closed-door military trials for noncitizens only has been called crypto-fascist.

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noun

1. a person who secretly supports or is sympathetic to fascism.

   Although initially a crypto-fascist, he soon transitioned to open declarations of support.

Etymology

Origin of crypto-fascist

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

In a since-deleted tweet, Zink described the novel as “a utopian critique of the crypto-fascist aesthetics of commercial art.”

From Washington Post • May 27, 2022

But equally correct was Michael Moorcock, who succeeded Campbell as science fiction’s next great sci-fi editor at New Worlds in the ’60s, when he labeled Analog “a crypto-fascist deeply philistine magazine.”

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 15, 2018

I am absolutely not arguing that Harry or Frodo or Peter Parker are crypto-fascist heroes, or that their creators have a hidden agenda that favors endless war and the permanent subversion of constitutional liberties.

From Salon • Sep. 9, 2011

Not everyone liked the style – Piero Cappuccilli, due to sing the title role, walked out of Lyubimov's Rigoletto in Florence, set in a crypto-fascist state.

From The Guardian • May 16, 2010