President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he will classify the far-left and violence-embracing movement Antifa as a “major terrorist organization”.
In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, Trump described the far-left group as “a sick, dangerous, radical left disaster” and announced that he will “strongly recommend” that those who finance Antifa be thoroughly investigated.
— Antifa is terrible. These aren’t protests, these are crimes that they’re doing. They’re throwing bricks at cars of the ICE and Border Patrol. They’re professional agitators. They should be put in jail. What they’re doing to this country is really subversive, the president told reporters in the Oval Office earlier this week.
The announcement comes in the shadow of the murder of Charlie Kirk, founder of the conservative organization Turning Point USA, which occurred on September 10, and Trump has publicly linked the suspected killer Tyler Robinson to militant far-left extremism.
“Radical left group of lunatics”
According to authorities, shell casings found near the suspected murder weapon were engraved with the texts “Hey fascist! Catch!” and “Bella ciao bella ciao ciao” – the latter phrase comes from an anti-fascist song that was popularized by the Italian resistance during World War II.
— We have a radical left group of lunatics out there, just absolute lunatics, and we’re going to get that problem solved, Trump told reporters before boarding his presidential helicopter.
The president simultaneously emphasized that he wants people to react to Kirk’s death in a non-violent manner, something he stressed that Kirk himself advocated throughout his career.
Violence and threats against dissidents
Antifa, which is an abbreviation for “anti-fascist”, is a decentralized far-left movement that lacks designated leaders, formal membership or a strict organizational structure. The movement claims to combat what they themselves call fascism, white power ideology and right-wing extremism – but has over the years exercised violence against conservatives as well as liberals and immigration critics.
Violence-embracing activists who identify with Antifa – often dressed in black clothing and masks – have also been criticized for spreading political opponents’ personal information online and carrying out or inciting attacks against them.
