There are many, of
whom I am one, who see a menacing movement toward fascism in this country. (See
my 7/20
article “Is the Fear of Fascism Ill-Founded?”) Any vocal opposition
to fascism, however, is often met with the rejoinder, “. . . but what about Antifa?”
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| The Antifa logo |
Descriptive Words
about Antifa
There is much
online and in the mass media about Antifa. Some of that
material is good and helpful; some is certainly
not so good or helpful. I am
particularly negative toward what is being
said/shown on Fox News and by people such as Sean Hannity and Tucker
Carlson.
There is, though,
a good and helpful book about Antifa written by a
scholar and college professor. That book is Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook
(2017) by Mark Bray, who earned his Ph.D. in 2016 at Rutgers University and
currently teaches at Dartmouth College.
Early in his
Introduction, Bray explains that “anti-fascism is a reasonable, historically
informed response to the fascist threat that persisted after 1945 and that has
become especially menacing in recent years.”
In particular, Antifa in the U.S. see
a real danger in the current presence and support of white supremacists, a
movement that seems to be increasing in numbers and
influence.
Ten Assumptions about Antifa
In reading/thinking about Antifa, I have come up with the following ten
assumptions.
1) Fascism is bad/harmful for any nation and for the world.
2) Opposition to fascism is good/potentially helpful for any nation and
for the world.
3) The people most actively opposed to fascism are referred to as Antifa.
4) As in any group/movement, there are “good” and “bad” people in Antifa.
5) Antifa members who use violence and physically harm persons should be
denounced.
6) Antifa members who adamantly and peacefully oppose fascism should be
applauded.
7) In the 1920s and ’30s Antifa in Italy and Germany were too few and too
late.
8) Increasing fascism in the U.S. is a real threat that must be taken
seriously.
9) Current criticism of Antifa is often misleading and ill-founded.
10) It is better to err on the side of supporting Antifa
than to condone fascism.
What about it, readers? Are any of these assumptions questionable and/or
indications of muddled thinking?
Despite Misgivings about Antifa
The proclivity of some Antifa members to use violence is troubling to me.
I am more in favor of what they try to do than in how they sometimes do it.
But I think DJT is entirely wrong in suggesting that perhaps Antifa
should be branded as a terrorist organization. Just last Saturday he tweeted, “Major consideration is being given
to naming ANTIFA an ‘ORGANIZATION OF TERROR.’”
That was just before an expected
confrontation between Antifa and Proud Boys in Portland,
Oregon. Police intervened and there were no serious clashes, but the leader of
the Proud Boys declared their Portland rally a success, saying, "Go Look at President Trump's Twitter."
Suggestions that Antifa is the (im)moral equivalent of white supremacist
groups such as the KKK, neo-Nazis, etc. are entirely wrong. The latter are
against Blacks, Jews, Latinx immigrants, and other non-whites. The Antifa are against
the racism and xenophobia of the groups that have characteristics of fascism.
I agree with what historian Dave Renton says in his book Fascism
(1999) and cited by Mark Bray: “. . . one cannot be balanced when writing about
fascism, there is nothing positive to be said of it.”
Bray further states, “We should be warier of those who are truly neutral
toward fascism than those who honestly espouse their opposition to racism,
genocide, and tyranny.”
So, despite some
misgivings about Antifa, I fully agree with their opposition to the far-right
neo-fascist organizations they actively oppose.
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