Antifascist Dad Podcast

Matthew Remski
  • 4.8 (41)
  • POLITICS

Your waypoint for antifascist lore, strategy, and wisdom from the generations, and now.

  1. 18H AGO

    23. The Future of Socialism in Canada w/ Jasmine Peardon

    Canada's proto-fascist scorecard is racking up big numbers. Jasmine Peardon — organizer, policy researcher, and New Democratic Party Socialist Caucus candidate for party president — joins me to discuss this critical turning point. We look at Mark Carney's Davos speech as a case study in political dishonesty. We trace the NDP's founding compromise: born in 1961 as a merger with the anti-capitalist CCF, the party has always held its socialist roots at arms length.  Jasmine's out to change that. We discuss the presidential vote structure that stacks the deck against grassroots candidates, the Yves Engler vetting scandal, and the concept of movement capture — how progressive energy gets absorbed and neutralized by parties that want your vote but not your values or full-time organizing. Also: the solidarity economy's double-tax problem: ordinary people paying twice for dignity while their taxes continue to fund war. Part two is on Patreon now. Sources: New Democratic Party (NDP) Once upon a Waffle Canada's economy lost 84,000 jobs in February, unemployment rate ticked up to 6.7% The Military Wins and Public Programs Lose in Carney's Budget Canada releases Budget 2025: Canada Strong Budget 2025: A "historic moment" for the arms industry White nationalist fight clubs pose risk for 'extreme violence,' warns government report 'Active clubs' are all over Canada. What are they? White Nationalism in Canada: Organized, Emboldened, and Growing RCMP charges military members allegedly plotting to form militia and seize land How a White Nationalist Club Thought It Found Safe Haven in a Montreal Gym Bubble Pop with Rachel Gilmore Here's one easy trick to combat foreign political interference in our media Postmedia and the American Hedge Fund Takeover of Canada's Newspapers For the sake of our democracy, American hedge funds should be banned from owning Canadian newspapers B.C. premier says Alberta separatists seeking assistance from U.S. is 'treason' Canadian separatists optimistic after meetings with Trump officials Chapters (00:02:01) - Jasmine Peardon's challenge to the NDP(00:12:42) - Mark Carney's 'clear picture' of Canadian politics(00:14:39) - Is the New Democratic Party a Social Democratic Party?(00:24:38) - How the Old Guard Will Respond(00:39:04) - Party Politics and the Solidarity Economy

    46 min

  2. MAR 11

    22. Pessimism of the Intellect, Optimism of the Will

    What does it mean to hold both clear-eyed despair and committed action at the same time? I trace the antifascist axiom "pessimism of the intellect, optimism of the will" through my own life — my late mother's instinctive class consciousness, my writing teacher Luciano's daily creative discipline, and my early Buddhist practice of contemplating impermanence. I unpack Eve Sedgwick's concept of paranoid versus reparative reading, and why the left's hypervigilance can foreclose on the energy needed for repair. I correct the common attribution of the mantra to Gramsci, locating the phrase's origin in Romain Rolland's 1920 review of Raymond Lefebvre's WWI novel — a cry from Flanders Fields about bourgeois sacrifice of the young. And I map the tension between intellect and will onto bodily experience, arguing that theory and mutual aid aren't competing demands but two characteristics of how we already live. Sources Romain Rolland, review of Le Sacrifice d'Abraham, L'Humanité, 19 March 1920 — transcription and translation Antonio Gramsci, "Address to the Anarchists," L'Ordine Nuovo, 3–10 April 1920 Raymond Lefebvre (1891–1920), Le Sacrifice d'Abraham (Flammarion, 1919) Academic treatment of the phrase's history: "Pessimism of the Intellect, Optimism of the Will," Rethinking Marxism (2019) Political reading of the slogan: "Pessimism of the Will," Viewpoint Magazine (2020) Eve Kosofsky Sedgwick, "Paranoid Reading and Reparative Reading," in Touching Feeling: Affect, Pedagogy, Performativity (Duke University Press, 2003) Bluesky: matthewremski.bsky.social Instagram: @matthew_remski YouTube: antifascistdad TikTok: @antifascistdad Patreon: antifascistdadpodcast Pre-order Antifascist Dad: Penguin Random House Chapters (00:00:06) - Mark Carney lib-fash dad reflections(00:01:56) - Pessimism of the Intellectuals vs optimism of the Will(00:18:23) - A Week in the Life of Fascism

    19 min

  3. MAR 4

    21. Against the Hierarchy of Bodies w/ Michelle Cassandra Johnson

    Sitting down today with racial equity educator and spiritual director Michelle Cassandra Johnson about what she calls the “hierarchy of bodies” — the long-standing social logic that determines whose lives are protected, valued, and believed. Against mainstream claims that rising authoritarianism is shocking or unprecedented, Michelle argues that today’s crises reflect very old patterns of domination rooted in race, power, and proximity to privilege. Why do some communities experience the current political moment as rupture while others recognize it as continuity? What are the downstream effects of the backlash against diversity, equity, and inclusion work? What does anti-racism training actually look like on the ground — and why re relationship, solidarity, and accountability more important than shame or guilt? Is multiracial community grounded in care the strongest inoculation against fascism? Part 2 now up on Patreon. Michelle Cassandra Johnson is an author, activist, spiritual teacher, racial equity consultant and educator, and intuitive and shamanic healer. For over 25 years as a racial equity educator, she has worked with large corporations, non-profits, and community groups. Michelle is a six-time published author, and in May 2025, her sixth book, The Wisdom of the Hive, co-written with her best friend, Amy Burtaine, was released. She lives in North Carolina with her husband, sweet dog, Jasper, and her honeybees.  https://www.michellecjohnson.com/. Notes:  All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AntifascistDad  Chapters (00:02:06) - Carney Takes all that stuff he said about Davos back(00:08:46) - Michelle on Anti-Fascism(00:11:09) - White Shock to the System(00:20:53) - Anti-Racism Training(00:32:03) - Understanding Whiteness

    37 min

  4. MAR 3

    UNLOCK 21.1 Against the Hierarchy of Bodies w/ Michelle Cassandra Johnson pt 2

    Back with Michelle, and pivoting from diagnosis to practice. We get a powerful story from her anti-racism work about calling someone into accountability without shaming or discarding them — and what real healing can look like in the room. We explore how multiracial, multicultural communities of care are built on the ground through shared language, listening, and repair. Why is the backlash against DEI and why relationship remains a quiet, radical force against fascism. Michelle also reflects on growing up in the Black Baptist church, how her spiritual life has always been inseparable from her political life, and why faith — in something beyond what we can currently see — may be essential to sustaining resistance.  CODA: A story from Antifascist Dad about the first inklings I had as a kid that I was white, and what that meant. Michelle Cassandra Johnson is an author, activist, spiritual teacher, racial equity consultant and educator, and intuitive and shamanic healer. For over 25 years as a racial equity educator, she has worked with large corporations, non-profits, and community groups. Michelle is a six-time published author, and in May 2025, her sixth book, The Wisdom of the Hive, co-written with her best friend, Amy Burtaine, was released. She lives in North Carolina with her husband, sweet dog, Jasper, and her honeybees.  https://www.michellecjohnson.com/. Notes:  All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AntifascistDad  Chapters (00:02:15) - The Secret to Anti-Racism Healing(00:06:59) - The Community of Anti-Fascism(00:12:08) - Collective Care and Community Care(00:15:58) - Inter-Spiritual Direction(00:20:57) - The Use of Religion as a Tool of Oppression(00:23:08) - Religion and Political Life(00:27:29) - The End of Capitalism(00:35:14) - How I first realized I was white

    40 min

  5. MAR 1

    UNLOCKED 19.1 From the Mormon Priesthood to Trans Advocate Dad w/ Blair Hodges Pt 2

    Back for Pt 2 of my conversation with Blair Hodges—Salt Lake City journalist, former Mormon insider, and dad to a trans kid—by digging into Mormon masculinity. Blair explains how Mormon emotional vulnerability descends from early charismatic revival culture, but also how a rising alt-right strain inside the church is pushing toward a more punitive “muscular” Christianity. On parenting: why children’s rights and autonomy require dismantling authoritarian habits, how neurodivergence exposes the cruelty of “normal” discipline, and how institutions often treat kids as property. Also: the privilege of political disengagement, what it feels like when the “flood” of fascism reaches your floor, and why listening to marginalized people is the starting point for real antifascist practice. I close by reading a short excerpt from my upcoming book, a section on gender performance and why trans liberation matters to all of us. Notes:  Relationshapes: Blair Hodges All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AntifascistDad  Chapters (00:02:50) - Mormons' Emotionality(00:07:25) - In Defense of Children's Rights(00:13:59) - The Time of a Parent's Death(00:16:10) - White People's Feelings About Fascism(00:22:01) - The Concerns of a More Moderated Mormon(00:31:14) - The Moment of Becoming Aware of Trans People

    36 min

  6. FEB 25

    20: Fascist Pipeline, Evangelical Pipeline w/ Brad Onishi

    Welcoming friend and colleague and fellow dad Brad Onishi (Straight White American Jesus, Preparing for War), to explore the parallels between evangelical conversion and fascist recruitment. Brad was a convert to evangelicalism at 14 and shares how teenage anxiety, alienation, and the search for belonging made him vulnerable to a worldview that offered refuge, certainty, and an enemy to fight. Bottom line: both fundamentalist religion and far-right movements promise clarity in chaotic times—binary thinking, moral urgency, and cosmic stakes. At the top: I trace the historical roots of the Satanic Panic and connect it to the current flood of conspiratorial reactions to the Epstein files. If we're parenting or mentoring, we have to recognize spiritual warfare narratives when they resurface on social media. They only confuse things.  Part 2 now up on Patreon. Brad Onishi is a social commentator, scholar, and co-host of the Straight White American Jesus (SWAJ) podcast. He founded Axis Mundi Media in 2023 in order to provide a platform for research-based podcasts focused on safeguarding democracy from the threats of extremism and authoritarianism. His writing has appeared at the New York Times, Politico, Rolling Stone, NBC News, HuffPost, and many other outlets. Onishi is a frequent guest on national radio, podcast, and television outlets, including “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross and MSNBC. His podcast, SWAJ, ranks in the top 50 of Politics shows on Apple’s podcast charts – ahead of programs from NPR, the NYT, and other national outlets. His book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism – And What Comes Next is available now. CORRECTION: In the intro, I said that Paul 23 presided over Vatican 2. It was actually John 23.  Notes:  Satanic Panic archive on Conspirituality. The Devil You Know — Sarah Marshall  The Smoke of Satan on the Silver Screen: The Catholic Horror Film, Vatican II, and the Revival of Demonology | Journal for the Academic Study of Religion All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@Antif... Chapters (00:00:07) - Fascist Pipeline, Evangelical Pipeline With Brad Onishi(00:02:04) - The Satanic Panic Content on Instagram(00:03:35) - The Catholic Church and the Sexual Abuse(00:10:19) - The Satanic Panic Commentaries on the Epstein Files(00:14:21) - Brad Onishi(00:16:26) - Anti-Fascist Dad Podcast(00:16:42) - There Are A Few Anti-Fascists In Portland(00:17:16) - Nobody Is Born a Fundamentalist(00:26:06) - Former Patriot Front Member on The Fear of the Enemy(00:33:14) - Bradley on Antifascist Ideology(00:43:17) - How multicultural and multi ethnic communities inoculate against fascism

    44 min

  7. FEB 23

    UNLOCK 20.1: Fascist Pipeline, Evangelical Pipeline w/ Brad Onishi

    Part 2 with Brad Onishi. What interrupts extremist pipelines? Brad dishes on his Japanese American family and how multicultural, multiethnic community might inoculate against fascist identity formation. I discuss the flip side: whiteness as the erasure of roots, the vulnerability of deracinated teens searching for story What are the healthier forms of religion—traditions that invite complexity, mystery, and emotional range rather than binary thinking and enemy-making?  The coda is on self-regulation, frugality, and inner renewal as part of antifascist life. Do we need antifascist spirituality?  Brad Onishi is a social commentator, scholar, and co-host of the Straight White American Jesus (SWAJ) podcast. He founded Axis Mundi Media in 2023 in order to provide a platform for research-based podcasts focused on safeguarding democracy from the threats of extremism and authoritarianism. His writing has appeared at the New York Times, Politico, Rolling Stone, NBC News, HuffPost, and many other outlets. Onishi is a frequent guest on national radio, podcast, and television outlets, including “Fresh Air” with Terry Gross and MSNBC. His podcast, SWAJ, ranks in the top 50 of Politics shows on Apple’s podcast charts – ahead of programs from NPR, the NYT, and other national outlets. His book, Preparing for War: The Extremist History of White Christian Nationalism – And What Comes Next is available now. Notes:  Satanic Panic archive on Conspirituality. The Devil You Know — Sarah Marshall  The Smoke of Satan on the Silver Screen: The Catholic Horror Film, Vatican II, and the Revival of Demonology | Journal for the Academic Study of Religion All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AntifascistDad  Chapters (00:00:09) - Antifascist Dad: The Evangelical Pipeline(00:02:26) - A Japanese American Family's Love(00:10:54) - How to Grow Up When You're 14(00:14:09) - The Pathways to Religious Solidarity(00:19:45) - Emotions of Black Church Worship(00:23:49) - Brad Onishi on Religion and the Trump Era(00:29:48) - Michael Parenti on Soviet Socialism

    39 min

  8. FEB 22

    UNLOCK 18.1 Talking to Young People about the Epstein Files pt 2

    What happens when a person we admire is implicated in networks of abuse? How can kids navigate guilt by association without sliding into cynicism or spectacle? Using Deepak Chopra’s Epstein emails to Jeffrey Epstein, we can see what charisma offers people in pain, what red flags look like, and how media culture trains us to confuse popularity with truth. Finally: how much apocalyptic evidence do we need before we pivot from doomscrolling to building durable forms of hope? I draw on Dahr Jamail’s arc catastrophe reporting to documenting Indigenous wisdom to explore the question. Notes:  Occult Features of Anarchism | The Anarchist Library The End of Ice - The New Press — Dahr Jamail We Are the Middle of Forever Indigenous Voices from Turtle Island on the Changing Earth — Jamail and Rushworth  All theme music by the amazing www.kalliemarie.com. Antifascist Dad: Urgent Conversations with Young People in Chaotic Times (North Atlantic Books, April 2026). Preorder: https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/807656/antifascist-dad-by-matthew-remski/ Instagram: @matthew_remski TikTok: @antifascistdad Bluesky: @matthewremski.bsky.social (Bluesky Social) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@AntifascistDad  Chapters (00:00:09) - How to Talk To Young People About The Epstein Files(00:02:08) - Two Issues of Intergenerational Weight(00:03:03) - Deepak Chopra and the New Age Industry(00:10:58) - Coming soon: A Midlife Crisis(00:19:48) - The Weight of Information

    23 min
See All (42)

4.8
out of 5
41 Ratings

About

Your waypoint for antifascist lore, strategy, and wisdom from the generations, and now.

Information

  • Creator
    Matthew Remski
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    42
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025
  • Show Website
    Antifascist Dad Podcast

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