I Am Antifa!
All American patriots should identify with Antifa
Do you know what Antifa is? It is against everything for which Donald Trump and his MAGA movement stand. So, what’s wrong with Antifa then? It is people against fascism. I ask again: What’s wrong with Antifa?
What ails Antifa is what ails much of our current political discourse: It is saturated with “stupid.” When you mention Antifa — which is really spelled with a small “a” because it means nothing more than “anti-fascist” — to a conservative, their heads spin like the devil-possessed little girl from The Exorcist — a movie that I still cannot watch it so scares the hell out me! This head-spinning reaction, however, comes as no surprise to me. The overwhelming majority of conservatives are either blissfully historically ignorant, or they cherry-pick historical facts in such a way that you would think they were baking a pie.
People who consider themselves part of Antifa do not align with any party but rather protest against what they perceive to be stumbles toward fascism. Antifa does not hold potluck dinners or Bingo nights. When issues arise, the people opposed to fascism gather.
While Antifa is generally seen butting against alt-right characters, they are not necessarily in favor of any one political party. Antifa does not gather in support of democrats or other political affiliations. In fact, political figures on both sides, including the past and present presidents, have condemned Antifa and the acts conducted by those claiming to be Antifa (What Is Antifa?).
Most tellingly, the FBI and Homeland Security don’t regard Antifa as a threat to U.S. security. White supremacist groups are regarded as the greatest domestic terror threat to the country, but conservatives don’t like to accept this reality because these terrorists give their support to the Republican Party.
Historically, when the idea of collective action by varying parties opposed to fascism was formed in countries like Italy and Germany, mixed into their ranks were communists. It was the 1930s, and the Soviet Union was the red menace feared by all. The idea that something called “Antifa” was forming to oppose policies perceived to be fascist alarmed people who feared the rise of a fifth column.
Paradoxically, by 2024, Russia would be in the grips of a full-scale fascist revolution, and Moscow’s support for right-wing, white supremacist groups would become a real problem. Add to that the rise of a president so wilfully playing the role of the useful idiot working tirelessly to advance not America’s interests but those of the Kremlin that the danger of fascism is today more real than at any time since the 1930s.
Fear and hatred of Antifa by the not-so-bright right-wingers explain eloquently why they are classified by many as “not-so-bright.”
If the alt-right stems from fear of the unknown, unfamiliar, and different, then Antifa stems from fear of what we do know: the violence that comes with hate and bigotry. The people who take to the streets adorned in all black to meet far-right protesters are only the newest in a long history of counter-protesters who are trying to fight against and prevent the stigma and discrimination that historically leads to oppression (What Is Antifa?).
One of the most significant reasons why conservatives so despise the idea of Antifa is not even so much that it is opposed to 90 percent of Republican policies but also because it accepts the existence of systemic racism. Antifa’s support for Black Lives Matter is all any white conservative needs to know about Antifa for them to hate it with all of their “precious little Christian hearts.”
I am Antifa. I am an American patriot. Regardless of all our flaws, having lived outside of the United States for the past 30 years, I can safely tell you that the world needs a responsible America. It needs a United States that errs but wakes each morning and tries to do better. There is a lot about our system and way of life that has caused irreparable harm to the Earth — our obsession with consumption, cars, and guns, for example — but the United States is one of the few countries that has a built-in pendulum. Currently, this pendulum has jettisoned up to “full stupid,” but a moment will come when it swings back and lands on “rational and sane” again.
If Antifa can create enough resistance to prevent the further breeding of right-wing hate and ignorance, then I am all for it.
Join me today in declaring: We are for America, so we are for Antifa.
PS: If you have any doubts about the goodness of Antifa, look up how many times Fox News attacks them.
Antifa means a lot of different things to different people which just the word itself is repulsive to many and they don’t even care to know the true definition. You are the first that I have seen that have taken the time to give Antifa the correct support it needs.
Just in my area there are antifa activists that MAKE UP THEIR OWN DEFINITION so to me it’s like the word Christian. There are too many definitions from too many tribes to make sensible statements about anything anymore. I hate fascism and it may surprise you but I believe that over 87% of America has no idea what the word fascism means.
Antifa harasses women fighting for their right to freely assemble and to keep their own spaces single-sex. They threatened women after the Wi spa incident. I can no longer support them.