Jose Antonio Primo de Rivera in Latin America - The Pursuit of a Fascist Usable Past during the Cold War (1939–1989)

This book explores a distinctive neo-fascist movement that emerged in Latin America and Spain during the Cold War. At times self-labeled “Jose Antonians,” the book’s protagonists evoked the memory and ideology of José Antonio Primo de Rivera. The author first elucidates who this Spanish fascist was and why his memory loomed large among Latin American rightists. Second, the book explores how, by prompting political violence and jeopardizing democratization processes, these neo-fascist ideologues impacted their respective societies. In doing so, the book initiates a much-needed debate on fascist memory in the Cold War.

This concise monograph will be of interest to researchers of transnational fascism, the Cold War, and Spanish and Latin American history.