Anti-Fascism

Why you don’t fight ideas with ideas

The rise of racist and white supremacist groups in Europe and North America has lead to the re-emergence of various anti-Fascist groups. The most well organized of these have been the militant anarchist groups which have become known as Antifa.

Antifa have gained infamy due to their black bloc attire and tactics which have, at times, lead to violence at protests. The most well-known incident of this being the Berkeley protests in the US.

Events such as Berkeley have lead to the criminalization (at least in our minds) of these groups and their misrepresentation in popular discourse. First, Antifa has been presented as a uniform entity which is completely misinformed. Antifa groups, which can be found around the world, are independently and autonomously organized by members of affected communities and have little to no communication with each other. Instead of communicating, local groups usually share best practices based on their individual experiences online to help others organize and be more effective at combatting the rise of racism and fascism. As such communication is more ‘open source’ than direct (laterally or vertically).

Second, is the assumption that all these groups subscribe to the same sort of organizational tactics and beliefs. It is true that those who participate in ‘black bloc’ tactics may be willing to engage in violence. But these individuals are there to ensure that there is no escalation from racists and white supremacists, not to escalate confrontations themselves. ‘Black bloc’ is also a tactic meant for the protection of the individuals, who tend to be more active in counter-protest organizing as opposed to a declaration of militancy. What do they have to protect themselves from? First, members of right-wing organizations actively try to identify anti-fascist organizers to spread their personal information such as social media accounts, workplaces, and home addresses. Second, the police try to single out who they think key members are to arrest. As such, any militancy these groups may display/the violence they may be willing to engage in is not guided by bloodlust, but rather a measured response to the detrimental organization on the right and to protect minorities and members of the community when right-wing marches or protests take place.

Third, it has created an image that the members of the ‘black bloc’ are representative of all Anti-Fascists. This is simply untrue as they are often the minority at any anti-fascist rally although may be the most prominent as they tend to be on the front lines. The reality of the Anti-Fascist movement is that it is multi-faceted and represents all the people. As a matter of fact, it’s a bit daunting to see Antifa develop into some sort of slur as being an Anti-Fascist should simply be all our default sentiment.

Let’s talk about it

The misrepresentation of what it means to be an Anti-Fascist has resulted in a worrying false equivalency. The presentation of the militant left being ‘just as bad’ as the right.

This is completely flabergasting as how we have reached a level where those mobilizing to protect their communities are held to the same light as those who are driven by an ideology that requires the elimination of non-whites from society is beyond any sense or reason.

This idea is fueled by those who have a distaste of any sort of confrontation, those who believe that civility is more important to uphold than the rights of others, and those who are willing to ignore the fact that far-right-wing ideology is predicated on violence itself.

Interestingly, these are the same people who believe that leaving far-right elements alone is the best way to counter the threat they pose — if they believe they pose a threat at all. This is a stance they wish to maintain in the face of rising hate crimes. But racist groups exist to create and magnify divisions between us, ignoring them won’t make them go away but rather emboldens them to escalate their presence and violence against minorities. Confronting them is the only tactic that has proved to work time and time again — It disorients their leadership and makes it unappealing for their members to join rallies.

Confrontation as Key

This puts the idea of fighting an idea with ideas to bed. By the time any right-wing organization has mobilized we are no longer dealing with the realm of ideas, but ideas that have manifested in the very real presence of racists and white nationalists who believe the only way to progress as a nation is by inflicting violence on people of colour, immigrants, and other minorities.

A right-wing rally is right-wing ideology manifested. Ideas will do nothing to change or hinder it. The only recourse is to meet this manifestation with an equally determined, if not more determined, manifestation of will — an opposite force strong enough to drive it back. This means showing up to counter protests, confronting racist incidents when they take place, and even engaging in defensive violence where necessary or strategically viable.

This is definitely not a rosy image, but any notions of civility at this stage only serves to enable hate groups to act with increased belligerence. To be clear, though, this does not mean that you need to adopt a militant stance or run to join your local Anti-Fascist ‘black bloc’ organizers — although I’m sure they would appreciate the support. It simply means being non-complacent and trying to stay aware of the next anti-fascist rally so you can attend. Higher turnout rates at counter-demonstrations actually mean that there will be a lower need for militant opposition, something that becomes necessary when anti-fascists are outnumbered or matched by far-right organizers.

As cliche as this may sound, there is strength in numbers. So a lower number of counter-protestors means that this strength needs to be substituted for militantly. The higher the body count, the clearer and louder the message of opposition becomes.

Time to do more

The issue of anti-fascism should in no way be one that divides the population. Fascism needs to be fought is a sentiment that we should all be comfortable with, but it is no longer enough to be comfortable with as an idea on its own. We need to be able to manifest that idea into action. There is no way that this is going to be a clean or civil endeavour, especially when faced with an opponent so vile — at least not until all of us who hold that belief make that belief known with action. Until then, it’s important to understand the motivations behind those who are holding the front lines and look at them as partners, not hooligans who are ‘as bad as’ those would be happy to see their neighbours disappear.