FBI Labels Anti-Fascists and Anti-Racists as Violent Extremists
FBI Labels Anti-Fascists and Anti-Racists as Violent Extremists
A recently released document from the FBI indicates anti-fascists are as violent as those who would overthrow the U.S. government
A recently released Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) document titled “Domestic Terrorism Symbols Guide”* links common protest symbols to “terrorism” — another marker in a common theme of conflating militant protest for social justice with deadly terrorist violence within the United States. Groups like the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and the Brennan Center have raised warnings about such documents, citing inadequate protections for people’s constitutional rights.
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"Anti-fa" literally means anti-fascist. The allies storming the beaches of Normandy were "anti-fa." The only thing "anti-fa" wants these days is for cops to stop murdering them. Needless to say, I support that position.
Some idiot put that in the list for purely political reasons.
It's easy to hate antifa if you're fa.
Names are meaningless. The allies were fighting the "National Socialists", who weren't Socialists. Likewise, "Defund the Police" movement members need not actually support defunding the police - supporting lowering their funding without lowering it to zero still qualifies.
“Defund the Police” movement members need not actually support defunding the police - supporting lowering their funding without lowering it to zero still qualifies.
I swear this was the worst slogan in the history of all of slogans, and it did irreparable harm to the reform movement.
and it did irreparable harm to the reform movement.
No. The reform movement did it all by themselves.
You are both correct.
Part of me loves that they kept the title, because it's so easy to ask very brief questions to get the word's user to start blubbering.
"Anti-what? They're against 'fa'? Oh, what is that short for? What idea are these people opposing? Tell me."
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LOL at all the downvotes for saying that fascism is bad. The Western world is totally screwed.
Yet when the Gadsen flag was put in the same leaflet there wasn't any commenting on political reasons
No, it's important to separate ideology from actions. Most, and all reasonable, would agree that fascism is bad. Most people are anti-fascist as is morally right and just.
The novel group of activists that call themselves Antifa have performed inexcusable, terrorist actions in the name of the movement and perverted it's noble goals. Fascism is bad, as are those that make misguided and foolish mistakes that harm innocents in the name of righteousness.
Antifa have performed inexcusable, terrorist actions in the name of the movement
Name one. And before you say it, no, looting after a protest goes south isn't an act of terror.
The novel group of activists that call themselves Antifa
Can you name any members of this group or share a news story of any action they have been a part of?
No, it’s important to separate ideology from actions.
Which is something the FBI has chosen not to do by calling the symbols of the ideology terrorist symbols instead of calling out any particular organizations that are doing anything actually criminal.
Antifa is not an organization, so if someone is labeling protest symbols as terrorism, we know where their loyalties lie. (hint: they don't want freedom of speech, they want to suppress the ideology).
There are actual terrorist organizations operating in the United States that the FBI is actually choosing to turn a blind eye to because they're afraid of the political ramifications of actually enforcing the law. Donald Trump is public enemy number one and protected only because the federal judiciary is too scared, the legislature too stupid and the executive too lazy to do anything about it.
Oh look... a confused fascist!
Your first half was good, but impugning terrorist actions on them wasn't the way to go.
I do agree though: setting fire to courthouses, or creating an environment of lawlessness that guarantees small mom and pop businesses get looted is also not a winning cause. Protesting and counter-protesting where normal operations can continue is essential. The moment you start fucking with people's day-to-day is where you lost.
Isn’t protest supposed to make things inconvenient for people and to make them uncomfortable? I agree that local small businesses should not be wrecked because that just makes you the bad guy, but if people are able to go about their day without having to make any adjustments, then is the message being properly conveyed?
Exactly, that's literally the point of protesting. To inconvenience people and make them aware of the issues. And to show those in power that you're not just going to go away if they ignore you. "Peaceful" protests are the show of force in the same way that worker strikes are the compromise workers and bosses agreed to to voice issues instead of going straight to dragging the bosses out of the factory and beating them to death in the streets.
The same things they're saying today about protesters are the exact same things they said about MLK and the Civil Rights Movement. The hand-wringing about protesting "the right way" has always been about making it easy to sweep the issues under the rug. And that's not even getting into the number of times stuff like undercover cops were found attempting to instigate violence during Anti-Fa protests so they could justify using violence against the protesters.
The Million Man March on Washington wasn't a "peaceful protest," it was a statement. It disrupted the entire city and made white people across the country afraid. Because if black people could assemble a million people to "peacefully" march across the city, disrupting the entire life of the city, what would they be willing and capable of doing if things got worse?
Even Gandhi has been misunderstood on this subject. I see people cite him very vaguely as a way of trying to get people to "quiet down and be peaceful (obedient and subservient)" but Gandhi, while non-violent, didn't avoid confrontation. He just didn't use violence to achieve it. He absolutely had an end goal of change, and did not accept the law as a barrier to achieve it.
We don't have to accept war for change, but we often have to accept some form of confrontation.
This is just another reason why the left continues to lose the working class. Poor working people are not going to react well when you are fucking with their livelihoods. I've seen it first hand as a union organizer.
If there is something fascists really hate are peaceful protests, in fact peaceful protests have better impact into society than violent protests and they don't give any reason to the fascists in turn to use violence and backup behind that pretext. Fascists love to push "legal" use of the force.
they don’t give any reason to the fascists in turn to use violence
Lol! You think fascists need an excuse to use violence?
They don't but when it's a matter of being better equiped in a protest usually the state have better chances.
There are ways to be smart about how you do it. I live in Portland and the way Antifa did it here was singularly successful at turning a majority of the city's population against them and their cause.
And keep in mind that Portland is very much a left-leaning city who's voters would otherwise have been quite sympathetic to the cause of police reform.
LOL at this both sides copypasta.