Things Trump Gets Wrong About Antifa

If there's one thing that we can almost all agree on, it's that we currently have one of the most ill-informed presidents in American history. Trump has misquoted facts to the press about a wealth of different points, or just flat-out lied.

In the wake of Charlottesville and the myriad killings linked to white supremacists, a lot of the focus Trump has had involves quashing antifascist, or Antifa, groups. He's smeared their names and misquoted a lot of facts about them.

Truth be told, there's a lot of stuff Trump gets wrong about Antifa. Speaking as someone who's talked to them and know the way they work, it's time we set the record straight.

First off, Antifa is nowhere near as violent as the alt-right.

To really get a good idea of how many things Trump gets wrong about Antifa, let's take a look at Trump's reaction to Charlottesville—once he reacted, anyway.

Trump infamously claimed, "You had a group on the other side that was also very violent," and quickly pointed the finger at the "alt-left." If you look at the facts, this is just not true.

Since Trump's appointment to the Oval Office, attacks done by white supremacists have skyrocketed. The Anti Defamation League points out that white supremacists carry out the majority of domestic terrorist attacks—not leftists.

Protests run by Antifa are very rarely violent.

Going on with the many things Trump got wrong about Antifa, let's talk about the "violent protests" that he claimed were the fault of the anti-facist movement, shall we?

It is true that there are a small cabal of violent leftists occasionally do act out. However, this is where things are different: it's literally a handful of people, in a movement that has thousands of people of it. The alt-right's protests are violent.

The truth is that most Antifa protests happen by "name and shame" tactics against Nazis, or by working nonviolent methods to alter public policy. It wouldn't be unusual to see Antifa doing nonviolent anthem protests, similar to what Colin Kaepernick did.

Antifa also doesn't outnumber the Alt-Right.

The way Trump makes it sound, you'd think that there are a million Antifa individuals for every alt-righter. Believe it or not, there are more racist, misogynist alt-right members than there are Antifa.

That being said, both sides of the conflict are relatively small portions of the United States population. If anything, there are more alt-right sympathizers than there are leftists.

Antifa are not anti-authoritarianism, either.

One of the most glaring things the right gets wrong about Antifa is the idea that they are anti-authoritarian anarchists. A handful of Antifa may consider themselves as such, but the vast majority of Antifa use government means and policy reform to further their goals of tolerance.

Since the primary weapon of Antifa is political reform, it's a bold-faced lie to say they're an anarchist group. Even when they arrange counter-protest groups at right wing rallies, they make a point to stay law-abiding.

Admittedly, part of this is because they realize that the chips are stacked against them in terms of police. However, a large part of the reason why most Antifa arrange lawful protests is because they are peaceful people.

Contrary to what many right-wingers may believe, Antifa is not a new thing.

Let's talk about where Antifa came from. Antifa started out as an anti-fascist group in the 1920s, and they were known to fight against those who supported Hitler. The movement died down after World War II, then quickly resurfaced once Neo-Nazis began to invade the punk scene during the 1970s.

During the Civil Rights movement, Antifa confronted white supremacists, worked to improve the standing of minorities, and also made a point to preserve free speech—even if what they were saying didn't jive.

Antifa is back now, because they need to be back. We need them if we want America to survive.

It's a good idea to point out that Antifa is not just one movement.

Realistically, you don't have Antifa meetings because it's not just one organization and this is what so many people get wrong about Antifa. There are dozens, if not hundreds of groups that are either assumed to be Antifa or identify as Antifa.

Antifa's branches are not even focused on a single goal against fascism, at times. There are Antifa branches that also have specific goals in mind, including LGBTQ rights, black rights, and women's rights as the forefront goals.

Antifa groups also aren't as easy to spot as you think.

Most people tend to assume that Antifa means you're dressed all in black, or that you look like punks, or that you have crazy hippie apparel. This is another common misconception.

Some of the most hardcore people in the Antifa movement do not wear any of these things. Rather, they don suits and do what they can to show that being a member of the left is something that can be respected.

The most infuriating myth about Antifa is that they're a group of "angsty young adults" who don't really stand for anything.

This is one of the most upsetting things people get wrong about Antifa, and to a point, it's also a problem that people like Donald Trump tend to perpetuate. Antifa isn't just some "flash in the pan" experience that angsty youth participate in; it's a legitimate political movement.

The people who aid Antifa are risking a lot by doing so in many cases, including their lives and livelihoods. You don't risk that much without believing that you're fighting for something that matters.

People, both young and old, are Antifa. We need to stop acting like it's just a phase, because it's not.

The Antifa groups also do not wield the kind of power that white supremacists do in America.

As painful as it is to say so, American government policy has long been one that has favored whites on an official level. Moreover, the court systems tend to lean right, even when it's not the right thing to do—which is precisely why many policies continue to have a rightwing lean.

The way Trump makes it sound, you'd think that leftists rule the world and have the government turn a blind eye to them. It's not true. Antifa groups have to fight a Goliath, and they're only David in that analogy.

Why is the right so afraid of the left, considering that the left is more peaceful than them? Could it be that they realize that they are campaigning that they know, deep down, is wrong?

Finally, one of the worst things people get wrong about Antifa is that it's irrelevant.

Antifa is more relevant than ever before, primarily because they're becoming one of the biggest hopes America has for a grassroots campaign that puts the needs of the people first.

Antifa is not something that just came and went after Charlottesville, they're here, resisting alongside you and your fellow countrymen. They are patriots because they believe in justice, equality, and the hope for a safer America in the future.