I'm actually not sure on this matter. I'd kind of like to hear a bit from both sides as to why some people think that it is and why others say that it isn't.

Here's my reason why I think Trump should: ANTIFA are just basement-dwelling, socialist scum that attack random people just for wearing MAGA hats. Plus, they've aided in rioting.

I have my facts to back this up as well:
link

^link of BLM protests have been peaceful and "antifa" people have shown up to most of them. Even this aside, causing property damage in a protest should NOT allow the government to declare you a "terrorist" and use anti-terrorism legislation against you. More on this in a bit. Also there are many anarchists that consider themsleves "antifa" and they'd be pretty ropable at being lumped in with the "socialists" lmao

Firstly, I'd really encourage people to read link by Australia's public broadcaster (ie. unbiased).

Essentially, antifa (which is just a shortening of "anti-fascist") is not a "group" you can join, it's a movement or a political goal. Anyone can be antifa - there are no official membership, or leaders, or events.

This is part of the reason why designating antifa to be a "terrorist organisation" has serious civil liberty concerns, according to ACLU. By declaring an ideology to be "terrorism", the government can effectively declare anyone protesting against authoritarianism to be a "terrorist". This gives the Feds a whole array of powers that are not allowed even for the worst sorts of criminal activity. They can detain them for seven days without charge, or interview them for 24 hours straight, or subject them to the heaviest surveillance and raids. The people protesting authoritarianism also just so happen to be the ones that are ideologically opposed to the current Government.

You don't have to consider yourself "antifa" to realise that the Trump administration are seriously messing with due process and First Amendment rights, and using the full force of the State against people that merely disagree with them politically. This isn't about whether you agree with antifa or the BLM protests, it's about whether you believe the Government should have that sort of power against its own citizens.

Could someone who picked “yes” explain why the government should have these powers?

Anti-fa doesn't exist without the fa... and if your government tells you that being anti-fa is terrorism, your government is at the very least experimenting with fascism to see what you will tolerate. It is a boundary test.

Highly recommend link.

^Exactly this

I was a little disturbed when the results of this poll were sitting at 75-25 "yes", considering that this is something which is pretty clearly authoritarian. The govt won't just declare "oh we're becoming more authoritarian now guys". You sorta gotta make those inferences yourself.

@misanthrope That vid was amazing, thanks so much for sharing. How have I not heard of Cornel West before??

I recommend everyone watch it themselves (it's relevant to the coming election) but some highlights:
- On Trump's potential re-election: "Well I think he'd be a substantial threat to the future of American democracy. I think that we would be on the road to escalating civil strife, I think we'd be on the road to overwhelming wealth inequality and polarisation. So we're talking really about the undercutting of the prospects of American democracy. I don't think that the fragility of the American Democratic experience can survive when it's tied to greed at the top and the scapegoating of the vulnerable, and a disregard of law, and abuse of power. That's why we have to have real examples of integrity, honesty, decency, courage and hope- because the only way we can get through this neo-fascist moment is through tremendous struggle and solidarity based on a commitment to poor and working people"

- Responding to a question as to whether the diversity of Democratic candidates has value or a distraction from the issues of power and who wields power: "Well certainly though when you talk about diversity you can't just talk about skin pigmentation or gender or sexual orientation. You can have neoliberal politicians who have different colours, different genders, different sexual orientations but they’re still not diverse ideologically. You have to make a decision - which ones have longevity of integrity when it comes to having solidarity with poor and working people. So no matter what colour a person actually is, if they are anti-racist in a deep way, anti-sexist in a deep way, anti-homophobic in a deep way, critical of capitalism and all of the successes when it comes to wealth inequality… I don't care what colour they are at all”

- "The neoliberal establishment is a colourful establishment, it’s not just vanilla”

Also lol this led me to discover that Cornel West hosts a podcast series called "The Tight Rope". Listened to link yesterday and it was genuinely one of the best things I've listened to. Highly recommend, esp to any Americans before the election

After reading the comments I'm more inclined to say no. your government is at the very least experimenting with fascism to see what you will tolerate. It is a boundary test. Kind of won me over.

One thing I wanna belatedly address

Re "Socialist scum": I would be hesistant to use "socialist" in a context that essentially makes it a slur. It was not long ago in the west where such a slur risked someone's job, liberty or even their lives. link of all the the members of the IWW - just one trade union amomg many - killed in the last century for that accusation. In 1919-1920, many people were deported on the mere suspicion of being left wing (even suspected social democrats).

The Smith Act trials in the 1950s brought criminal prosecutions against people solely on the basis of their beliefs, rather than their actions. These convictions were later found unconstitutional under the First Amendment, but not before many of them had served years in prison.

At the height of McCarthyism, thousands of ppl lost their job and were blacklisted on vastly exaggerated charges. In 1969, socialist activist Fred Hampton was murdered; scholars widely consider his death to be an assassination under the FBI's initiaitive. And as recently as 2010, over 70 FBI agents simultaneously raided the homes of prominent anti-war activists.

A few years ago, if was revealed that the construction industry had a huge, secret illegal database of workers with leftist views and/or who had been involved in trade unions (much of it collected with secret surveillance). Over 40 major firms referred to the database when deciding who to hire and fire. Many workers lost their jobs and couldn't be rehired anywhere due to their inclusion on the database.

On an aneceotal level, my grandma grew up without a dad for the first 10 years of her life - he was imprisoned by the Greek far-right regime for his suspected leftist sympathies.

Essentially, using the word "socialist" as a slur is rooted in some pretty messed up history. I don't think it was truly meant that way when it was used on this thread, and ofc it wasn't meant to conjure up such things. But it's a history that we should be mindful of when discussing politics and in the way in which we deploy such words.

So yeah this definitely wasn't intended to be chatisement or anything, more just an educational tidbit + something to keep in mind. I see "socialist" flung around like some horrible insult too often lol

ALSO it's taken me a decade on fanpop to realise I can drag down the bottom-right corner of the comment box and make it bigger??? Shook

Y-you can what???

*Dragging box up and down*

W-wha-what the fuck is this???

I was today years old when I learned...

Lmao has it actually been here since the start??? I remember the day I finally worked out how to make text bold or italicised. Similar vibe rn

Also I was just watching a stream by shoe0nhead (@zan has linked her vids in this club before) and she did a really good 2-minute spiel on why she's against designating antifa a terrorist organisation: link. This is from a person who firmly condemns any violence at protests.

I disagree with Antifa being called "an organization."

^Agree. link put it nice and succinctly:

Antifa is a movement, not an organization. It’s not something you join, it’s something you are. Just like environmentalism or feminism or any other movement you can think of, there’s no one organization that you can apply for membership in. You are anti-fascist if you are a) opposed to fascism and b) willing to do something about it. That’s it! You meet those two qualifications, then you’re antifa!

@Americans Y'all have a proud link

Being anti-antifa is unpatriotic ;)

Not at all. However I am more bothered that the KKK isn't designated a terrorist organization considering their history and the shitty things they do constantly. Or the other hate groups in general.