Tornado Alley (PROG)

[fuagf]

mr40, Is the Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement part of Antifa? Guess if you say every anarchist group is Antifa then the answer would be yes, but is that legitimate?

Antifa (United States)

[...]

Approaches

The nature and activities of Antifa have caused some debate among anarchists; the prominent Anarchist website It’s Going Down published a critique of Antifa [clearly indicating some anarchist groups do not see themselves as members of Antifa] in November 2016 originally from Lucha No Feik, entitled "On Antifa: Some Critical Notes". The article criticised Antifa [clearly many anarchist groups are not a member of Antifa] for essentially being a reactive, rather than a proactive force. The article argues that Antifa are too hyper-focused on micro Neo-Nazi groups or single figures such as President Donald Trump, instead of [again, clearly many anarchists do not agree with the policy of those other guys, those other guys being Antifa] "analyzing the structural nature of our racist society." The article stated that the Antifa's ideological position was "but a few steps removed from the Liberal position that we should just all get along." [wow, clearly those anarchists do not see themselves as members of Antifa!] It also pointed out that Antifa did not protest against the administration of President Barack Obama. [yeah, not like we real anarchists did. We are not you, Antifa] This elicited a response from three active participants in the movement [clearly placing the anarchists of the article outside of the Antifa group] with "What do US Antifascists Actually Believe?", where they stated, "Mobilizing large radical movements against neoliberal (or populist) capitalism is not the focus of anti-fascism; this is the work of the anarchist and anti-capitalist movements as a whole." The movement has also been criticised by mainstream media.

According to National Public Radio, "People who speak for the Antifa movement acknowledge they sometimes carry clubs and sticks," and their "approach is confrontational." CNN describes Antifa as "known for causing damage to property during protests." Scott Crow, described by CNN as "a longtime Antifa organizer," argues that destroying property is not a form of violence.

According to Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at the California State University, San Bernardino, Antifa activists participate in violent actions because "they believe that elites are controlling the government and the media. So they need to make a statement head-on against the people who they regard as racist." According to Antifa organizer Crow, Antifa is based on the idea of direct action, "The idea in Antifa is that we go where they (right-wingers) go. That hate speech is not free speech. That if you are endangering people with what you say and the actions that are behind them, then you do not have the right to do that. And so we go to cause conflict, to shut them down where they are, because we don't believe that Nazis or fascists of any stripe should have a mouthpiece."

Criticism

Antifa has been subjected to smear campaigns by elements of the far right and alt-right. In August 2017 the image of British actress Anna Friel portraying a battered woman in a 2007 Women's Aid anti-domestic violence campaign was re-purposed using fake Antifa Twitter accounts organized by way of 4chan, an investigation by Bellingcat found. The image is captioned "53% of white women voted for Trump, 53% of white women should look like this" and includes the Antifa flag; another image featuring an injured woman is captioned "She chose to be a Nazi. Choices have consequences," and includes the hashtag #PunchANazi. Although the smear campaign was not regarded as particularly sophisticated, investigator Elliot Higgins remarked to the BBC that "This was a transparent and quite pathetic attempt, but I wouldn't be surprised if white nationalist groups try to mount more sophisticated attacks in the future."

In August 2017 The White House petitioning system We the People gathered more than 100,000 signatures requesting Antifa be classified as a terrorist organization in three days, and perforce shall receive an official review and response from the White House; at over 300,000 signatures, it is currently the third most-signed submission posted.[44] The originator, who goes by the nom de plume Microchip, said to Politico that getting conservatives to share and discuss the petition was the entire point, rather than prompting any concrete action by the government.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antifa_(United_States)#Approaches

Clearly all anarchists do not see themselves as members of Antifa irregardless of right-wing desire to put all who oppose white supremacist ideology and action in one, for them, comfortable little basket.

Maybe some Antifa groups would see the Revolutionary Abolitionist Movement as members. I don't know, but you have not produced any solid evidence why anyone should see

Short Term Goal: The Underground Railroad

We will create networks for those facing detention, incarceration, deportation, or white supremacist violence to escape and live with dignity. We invite revolutionaries to help build a contemporary underground railroad, outside the reach of the state. Revolutionaries, social centers, and antifa groups that are already active can help build greater infrastructure of resistance to support those fleeing the state. From this foundation, we set the political framework for the next stages.
https://revolutionaryabolition.org/

that group as a member of Antifa.