Faculty Speakers Series with Professor JJ Sylvia

About This Event

Join Professor JJ Sylvia (Communications Media) for a virtual talk https://jjsylvia.link/talk entitled "Learning from WW2 Era Anti-Fascist Rhetoric in the Age of Social Media." 

Presented by Dr. J.J. Sylvia IV as part of the Speaker Series supported by the Community Read and Amelia V. Gallucci Cirio Library. Drawing on archival research conducted at the Museum of Liberation in Rome, the Antonio Gramsci Foundation, and other historical sites across Italy, this presentation explores how WWII-era Italian anti-fascist movements employed rhetoric to mobilize resistance against fascism. Through strategies such as emotional appeals, delegitimization of the enemy, simplified moral dichotomies, and the reframing of national identity, anti-fascist communicators crafted messages that galvanized collective action. By analyzing these historical rhetorical approaches, this research offers insights into how contemporary social media platforms can be designed to resist authoritarian ideologies and foster democratic, inclusive communities.