“Today, few people want to see a future that repeats anything like Europe in the 1930s,” McGoogan says. “While tracking that history in my forthcoming book, I couldn’t help but notice that today’s overriding political narrative repeats nothing, yet it looks ominously familiar.”

At one time, McGoogan says defenders of democracy had to contend not just with Hitler but with Franco, Mussolini, and Stalin, who together defined the first age of dictatorship.

Those who believed they could control Hitler, found out they could not.  “Hitler went on to manipulate the system, install allies in key positions, and encourage them to knock down the guardrails of a functioning democracy,” McGoogan says. “The most powerful nation in Europe then ran amok, invading and occupying its neighbours.”

Today, McGoogan says, we have entered the Second Age.

Shadows of Tyranny

“With tyrants ruling Russia, China, and North Korea, among other countries, Donald Trump has never met an autocrat he did not admire,” he says.

McGoogan poses the question, “How should Canadians respond, officially and individually, to the possibility of democratic collapse in our powerful neighbour to the south?”

“Going back to 2016, when Trump was coming on strong, I said, whoa! This doesn’t look good at all. And then, he won the election. When I saw Trump come on the scene, seeing the kind of guy he is, I launched right into this,” McGoogan says.

“What I see happening, it’s not a repeat exactly but it’s sure got some similarities. You look at the rise of Hitler. People thought, we’ll control him. He’ll be our figure head.”

That, of course, was not the case.

“The Democrats managed to win the last election in 2020, and now, here we are, deep in, again,” he said. “I am Canadian, I don’t get to vote, but my contention is that whatever happens in the U.S., has a major impact around the world, and certainly, here in Canada.”

When writing and researching for his book, McGoogan read about the resistance. “Winston Churchill arrived at the right time and he was able to lead the resistance that eventually turned into a victory for the good guys.” McGoogan says.

Shadows of Tyranny ends with an epilogue entitled, ‘Where Is Our Churchill’? “I wondered, who is going to lead the resistance now? Where is the right person to do that job? The good news is that a 21st century Churchill has emerged from the shadows, and her name is Kamala Harris,” he says. “To me she is a woman of destiny. I see things coming together now. She should be able to turn the election around. But a guy like Trump, as he’s proven already, if the results don’t suit him, if he doesn’t win the election, that’s when you start to get a bloodbath because he’s out of control.”

Some might think about the impacts of trading with the U.S., but, McGoogan says that’s just small potatoes compared to the bigger picture. “Trump is a game changer, and a major threat. It’s not just going to be a few clauses in the trade agreement if he becomes president in the U.S. again,” McGoogan says.

Ken McGoogan has published seventeen books, mostly historical or biographical narratives but also novels and memoirs. His bestselling titles includes Searching for Franklin, Fatal Passage, Lady Franklin’s Revenge. This latest work actually comes full circle from first book, Canada’s Undeclared War: Fighting Words from the Literary Trenches. “I have always had this political edge, I think in everything I’ve written. But this is more explicitly political,” he says.

McGoogan has already received rave reviews prior to the release of Shadows of Tyranny. Canadian Ambassador Bob Rae says, “Ken McGoogan’s book is a truly brilliant account of what happens when we let our guard down, when we ignore the signs of deep authoritarianism all around us. An unforgettable trip through our past, present, and potential future.”

And according to Peter Mansbridge, “McGoogan is a master history teller, and as much as his past Arctic fact-based tales spellbind me, this may be his most important work. Learn from history goes the saying, and Shadows of Tyranny is a detailed warning we should not and must not ignore.”

McGoogan says he feels very strongly about his message. “My message is, wake up people! This particular election really is really serious. It really is a battle between democracy and autocracy. And it is going to bleed right into Canada, no question about it. We have do whatever we can to prepare ourselves in the event that things go wrong,” McGoogan says.

“I am alarmed. And this book is a product of that. It’s saying look what happened last time folks!”

Shadows of Tyranny: Defending Democracy in an Age of Dictatorship can be pre-ordered at all the best bookstores.

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