The fasces a symbol of "popular revolution" and "liberal governance", among, of course, other things

"But his analysis also shows just how crucial historical knowledge and social context are for the interpretation of such objects.  There is, we are told, 'nothing "fascist" about the fasces' in Daniel Chester French's statue of Lincoln (1922), where the President is shown leaning on them.  Brennen reveals that any attempt to erase the symbol from our present would require 'dismantling a good bit of the US Capitol . . . and countless other public structures and monuments nationwide'.
     ". . . The fasces have been around for more than 2,700 years.  They have been the symbol of the power of kings and consuls, but have also formed an integral part of the symbolism of popular revolution, liberal governance, fascist dictatorship and, more recently, the bigoted world-view of the far-right.  Interpretation is always historically and socially contingent.  T. Corey Brennan's long history of the fasces reminds us that there is a time and place for symbol-smashing, but also that if we attempt to erase such symbols we risk caricaturing them, forgetting the nuance of their historical reality and ultimately ceding their unquestionable power to those who would use them to promote hate-filled ideologies."

     Henry Stead, "Rod's for history's back:  There is more to the fasces than Mussolini's misappropriation," Times literary supplement no. ____ (June 30, 2023): 13 (13).