Beware of the 1930s: A Reality Check on the Current Global Rupture
Every now and then, someone asks, “Is the world drifting back to the 1930s?” And honestly, it’s a fair question. Look around: surging nationalism, toxic xenophobia, collapsing trust in institutions, conspiracy-fuelled politics, and the rupture of the global rules-based order. It all feels unsettlingly familiar - like we’re replaying a movie whose ending we already know too well.
I recently read a CBC Radio article and listened to its accompanying podcast on “How can empathy be dangerous?” The piece dives into the wild debate over empathy, the thing we usually celebrate as pure goodness. While science says empathy glues society together, a rising chorus of conservative voices insists it’s getting “weaponized” to push progressive causes. Such thinkers warn that empathy can cloud judgment and distort truth. But what if fear - not empathy - is the real troublemaker, shrinking our compassion into tight little tribes?
Remember. A dangerous brew of economic anxiety, cultural resentment, and political extremism defined the 1930s. Back then, toxic chauvinism and nativist nationalism didn’t just divide societies - they paved the road to the Holocaust, one of the darkest chapters in human history. Ordinary frustrations were weaponized. Economic fear turned into scapegoating. “Us vs. them” thinking hardened into state policy. And silence - or indifference - did the rest.
Today, the echoes are loud.
Across the world, people feel economically alienated and culturally displaced. Populist movements, both right and left, are thriving by tapping into collective fears about national identity, globalization, job security, and shifting social values. We’re seeing democratic norms erode in places once considered stable - Hungary, Turkey, Russia, and countries across Latin America, Africa, and Asia. Even in North America, where democracy is often taken for granted, nothing feels normal lately. The rules that once provided the stable architecture of governance, peaceful coexistence and predictable trade relations with neighbours are being violated. Trust in domestic and international institutions is being chipped away.
And when people feel destabilized? That’s when demagogues thrive.
Just like the 1930s, some political leaders today traffic in racist rhetoric, attack democratic institutions, and undermine the very architecture of global cooperation built after World War II to prevent another catastrophe. We see the rise of inhumane immigration policies and collapsing race relations. Add to that a reckless dismissal of science - on climate change, public health, and more - and you’ve got a volatile global moment.
It’s not identical to the 1930s, of course. History doesn’t repeat itself perfectly, but it often rhymes. And the rhyme we’re hearing today is unsettling.
But here’s the hopeful part: we also know better. We’ve seen what happens when chauvinism and nativism go unchecked. We know what happens when fear is allowed to rule politics.
Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Davos speech at the World Economic Forum in January acknowledged and named what everyone in the room already knew - that the old “rules‑based international order” is basically toast. “We are in the midst of a rupture, not a transition,” he declared.
During my talk at a workshop organized by my home department (Political Science) at Brock University, I argued that countries like Canada have a unique opportunity to stand as a counterweight. Historically, Canada, a middle power, has punched above its weight in defending human rights, building the post-war global order, constructing a world-class, innovation-driven economy, and designing humane social policies that protect the most vulnerable and support people during difficult times. Canada can once again be a bastion of rules-based governance, a defender of democratic values, and a voice for shared humanity in a world increasingly pulled toward division.
The takeaway? We’re not doomed to repeat the 1930s - but we could, if we’re careless. History offers lampposts, and ignoring them is a luxury we can’t afford.
So the real question isn’t whether the world is sliding back into the 1930s. It’s whether we’re willing to pull it forward into something better.
And that part is entirely up to us.
