Parallel State

The "Parallel State" is a term coined by American historian Robert Paxton to describe a collection of organizations or institutions that are state-like in their organization, management and structure, though they are not officially part of the legitimate state or government. They serve primarily to promote the prevailing political and social ideology of the state.

The Parallel State differs from the more commonly used "state within a state" in that they are usually endorsed by the prevailing political elite of a country, while the "state within a state" is a pejorative term to describe state-like institutions that operate without the consent of, and even to the detriment to, the authority of an established state (e.g. Churches and religious institutions or secret societies with their owns laws and court systems).

Parallel States are common in societies, such as Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy, the Soviet Union, Iran and North Korea, and comprise of youth organizations, leisure organizations, work/labor collectives, unions and militias.

Famous quotes containing the words parallel and/or state:

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    President Lowell of Harvard appealed to students ‘to prepare themselves for such services as the Governor may call upon them to render.’ Dean Greenough organized an ‘emergency committee,’ and Coach Fisher was reported by the press as having declared, ‘To hell with football if men are needed.’
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