Trump& #39;s calculated move to solidify himself as the "law + order" candidate by claiming the US will label "ANTIFA," a political stance against far-Right violence, white supremacy + fascism, a terrorist "group," mirrors similar efforts to do the same to #BlackLiveMatter. A thread.
"ANTIFA," which is only put in all caps by the grifter-Right + their followers - isn& #39;t an organization. Antifa, short for antifascism, is simply a political stance against fascism which can manifest in a variety of political and community forms of protest, organization + action.
Trump and his backers have also doubled-down on presenting the wave of riots and demonstrations in the terms of a vast conspiracy theory - that they are all the work of "ANTIFA."
This isn& #39;t a new play - it& #39;s the same discourse and divided and conquer technique that was employed during the Civil Rights Movement, where the Klan and local police branded Freedom Rights "outside agitators" and "Communists." https://www.crmvet.org/nars/peter1.htm ">https://www.crmvet.org/nars/pete...
In 2017, documents showed "government surveillance of the Movement for Black Lives + Black activists. They show how federal agencies characterized protesters as “Black Supremacist Extremists” + portrayed First Amendment protest as inciting violence to justify surveillance."
"These documents also reveal for the first time the existence of a report produced by the DHS Intelligence and Analysis office called the “Race Paper” and that is entirely blacked out in reliance on the National Security Act." https://www.netrootsnation.org/nn_events/nn18/the-race-paper-and-other-secret-documents-how-the-fbi-and-dhs-are-surveilling-and-criminalizing-black-protest/">https://www.netrootsnation.org/nn_events...
Furthermore, as the Young Turks reported, the documents showed that the FBI "has established a program dubbed “Iron Fist” targeting so-called black identity extremists with undercover agents." https://theintercept.com/2019/10/29/fbi-surveillance-black-activists/">https://theintercept.com/2019/10/2...
This "Iron Fist" program seems to bear a striking resemblance to COINTELPRO, or the Counter Intelligence Program, that sought to disrupt and destroy social movements in the 1960s and 1970s. https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/08/fbi-cointelpro-new-left-panthers-muslim-surveillance">https://www.jacobinmag.com/2016/08/f...
Under COINTELPRO, activists and organizers were set-up on charges, had their lives ruined, and in many cases, were assassinated by local police. https://www.zinnedproject.org/materials/assassination-of-fred-hampton">https://www.zinnedproject.org/materials...
The far-Right has also played a role in pushing the State to declare grassroots movements as "terrorist." In 2016, a White House petition to label #BlackLivesMatter https://abs.twimg.com/hashflags... draggable="false" alt=""> a terrorist group got over 100K signatures and was pushed heavily by the far-Right. https://www.cbsnews.com/news/white-house-responds-to-petition-to-label-black-lives-matter-a-terror-group/">https://www.cbsnews.com/news/whit...
Petitions that receive over 100K signatures get a White House response, to which the then Obama White House responded: "The White House plays no role in designating domestic terror organizations," nor does the U.S. government "generate a list of domestic terror organizations."
A year later + ironically right after the deadly neo-Nazi Unite the Right rally, white nationalist troll and Trump supporter "Microchip" started a similar petition to label "ANTIFA" a terrorist group. The White House petition also got over 100K signatures. https://www.politico.com/story/2017/08/24/antifa-white-house-petition-trump-troll-241990">https://www.politico.com/story/201...
In response the Trump White House wrote: "Although Federal law provides a mechanism to designate + sanction foreign terrorist organizations and state sponsors of terrorism, there is currently no analogous mechanism for formally designating domestic terrorist organizations."
Ironically, Tarrio& #39;s petition to label "ANTIFA" a terrorist organization failed to even pass 40K signatures - thus gaining 60K signatures less than it did right after Charlottesville. Even still, Tarrio found a backer of his petition in the form of Ted Cruz, who promoted it.
Cruz has rubbed elbows with the far-Right in numerous instances. Speaking at rallies alongside the far-Right Oath Keepers militia + appearing alongside Proud Boys founder + contributor to white nationalist American Renaissance publication, Gavin McIness. https://youtu.be/VHhQc6ZxFTA ">https://youtu.be/VHhQc6ZxF...
It& #39;s been over 5 years since the Ferguson Rebellion. Since that time, 6 people associated with the activist community who were involved in the demonstrations have died, "some in violent, mysterious ways." Two young men were found dead inside burned cars. https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/culture-news/ferguson-death-mystery-black-lives-matter-michael-brown-809407/">https://www.rollingstone.com/culture/c...
Neither "ANTIFA," anarchists, or any activist group for that matter - are behind or "directing" the uprising that is taking place across the US following the murder of #GeorgeFloyd. Young people of color are the driving force - and this is exactly who the State fears the most.
People need to refuse to allow the government to separate, split, and break apart those in the streets - and those who sympathize with them - especially around racial lines - which of course is what Trump does the best.
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