The Hidden History of How Fascism Was Defeated in World War Two

“Anyone who loves freedom owes such a debt to the Red Army that it can never be repaid.”

May 09, 2025

From the Party for Socialism and Liberation:

Today marks 80 years since the surrender of Nazi Germany—a day marked around the world as Victory Day. In Hollywood movies and history textbooks, the reality of how fascism was defeated has been twisted and distorted to fit the needs of the U.S. government. Here are some of the key factors that are left out of the official story.

The Soviet Union Led the Way

At the cost of 27 million lives, the people of the Soviet Union made the most massive sacrifice to defeat Hitler. Around 80% of the German military was deployed against the USSR, and still the Red Army emerged victorious and captured Berlin.

The socialist character of the USSR was essential to its triumph. The Soviet war effort was able to continue despite a devastating Nazi invasion because central planning institutions like the Evacuation Council were able to physically move 1,523 large enterprises along with upwards of 20 million people far to the east, outside the reach of Hitler’s war machine.

Women played a central role in the war effort, both as fighters on the front line and in other capacities. Dr. Zinaida Yermolyeva, for example, is a hero of the Battle of Stalingrad. Through brilliant research conducted under the most difficult circumstances imaginable, Dr. Yermolyeva was able to prevent an outbreak of cholera that would have made the city’s defense impossible, producing penicillin in an underground laboratory.

The Fight Against Fascism Abroad and Racism at Home

Progressive people in the United States understood that the most important priority was to defeat fascism in the war. But how could they reconcile the fact that the U.S. government’s system of white supremacy was actually an inspiration to Hitler?

One way was to use the momentum of the war effort to build the struggle against Jim Crow. Initiated by leading Black newspaper The Pittsburgh Courier, the “Double-V Campaign” agitated for victory over fascism abroad, and victory over racism at home. Over a million Black soldiers fought during World War Two, dealing a crushing blow to Hitler’s white supremacist project and then often going on to become activists against segregation when they returned.

Hundreds of Americans who fought against fascism in the Spanish Civil War as part of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade also fought in World War Two. The Spanish Civil War was an immediate prelude to the wider war in Europe, and volunteers from the United States fought in a communist-led, integrated unit. The first Black Officer in U.S. history to lead white soldiers was Oliver Law, commander of the Abraham Lincoln Brigade (who died heroically in combat, leading a charge against a fascist stronghold).

China’s Central Role in Defeating Fascism

China in WW2 on X: "Chinese Communist troops during 1948 Linfen battle against the Nationalists, displaying a variety of #WW2-era steel helmets: Japanese, American and even German. #China #Japan https://t.co/pPaE2EpKAE" / X

World War Two started not in 1939 in Europe, but in 1937 with the Japanese invasion of China. The Japanese empire was ruled by a fascist regime that considered the Chinese to be an inferior people, and committed unthinkable atrocities. Second only to the Soviet Union, around 20 million Chinese soldiers and civilians died in the longest stretch of the war against fascism. Even after the United States entered the war in 1941, the majority of Japanese troops were deployed to China—not in Pacific islands.

There were two armies in China that resisted the Japanese invasion. One was led by the Nationalist Party government, and another was led by Mao and the Communist Party. Prior to World War Two, the two armies fought each other, but united in face of the Japanese invasion. The Communist-led forces distinguished themselves by their heroism in battle and devotion to the people. Starting with only 45,000 troops, the communist forces grew to nearly three million by the end of the war and formed the basis of the People’s Liberation Army that would go on to establish a socialist state several years later.

Communist Fighters Resist Occupation

Even when the government of their country had fallen to the fascist invaders, communists picked up arms and waged heroic guerilla wars against far stronger occupying armies. They sabotaged supply lines, assassinated some of the worst war criminals, and were able to capture significant amounts of territory in some cases. In Yugoslavia, communist fighters were able to liberate their country from German occupation even before the Soviet Red Army arrive.

In Korea, guerilla groups formed to fight fascist Japan. Oftentimes, Koreans would serve in Chinese communist units. One of these guerilla groups was led by Kim Il-Sung, who went on to establish a socialist government in the north. Shortly after World War Two ended, the Korean War broke out with the U.S. government backing a regime in the south led by officials who had collaborated with the Japanese occupiers.

Massive resistance groups led by communists also emerged in Italy (ruled by a fascist regime allied with Hitler) and France (ruled by a collaborator fascist government in the south and directly by German occupiers in the north). The communist-led FTP initiated the armed resistance to Nazi occupation in France. By the end of the war, the Communist Party of Italy’s Garibaldi Brigades numbered over 50,000 fighters.