Small bands of antifa protesters have formed around anarchist ideas in the United States for decades, being integral part of the anti-globalization protests of the 1990s. They are not controlled by any party and few of the small groups are in organizational contact with others. It is a sign of the weakness of the left and the absence of something like the Red Fighters that the antifa of today in the United States exists. To make outlandish and outsize comments about its tactics is to misidentify antifa. It is not a movement or a party. It is a symptom of the growth of fascism and the lack of a working-class alternative. Without that mass alternative to fascism, antifa plays a crucial role. To call for the disbanding of antifa is ridiculous because it is not going to do so – it exists in a space that demands its presence.
Raw Story, “Why it’s just bonkers to compare fascists to the activists trying to stop them”
