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I am weary of drawing any conclusions about Antifa other than that they have no ideological coherence and the individuals attempting to create such coherence are reactionaries and imbeciles. For example, Matt Lyons who writes for Political Research Associates (where many of these Antifa types try to get the air of professionalism by working at an NGO) has written extensive blog articles on what is (basically) the premise of the Antifa worldview: that fascism is itself a revolutionary anti-capitalist ideology in its own right, like the Left, and seeks to put forward an alternative revolution in lieu of a socialist/communist one. As such, fascists sometimes use revolutionary rhetoric, and the slogan that the cops and the Klan go hand-in-hand is actually wrongheaded. Because fascists are also revolutionaries, it is therefore reasonable to subject leftist and other dissident groups to a ruthless witch-hunt to find anti-Semitism and Nazi infilitration in order to prevent the rise of a fascist takeover under the guise of leftism. The evidence of this looming threat given by Lyons and others are terrorist attacks by far-right groups and the existence of hate crimes. There are, separately, Antifa types that still hold the cops-and-the-Klan worldview, but who aren't much better. Because they also view the cops and fascists as one in the same, they view street-fighting with Nazis as an alternative to revolutionary activity and structural critiques of capitalism. Why fight the cops when you can fight the traveling circus of fringe Nazi hate groups? They end up internalizing the dominant ideologies of capitalism because they mistake fighting it with fighting fringe weirdos, which explains why Antifa groups (with the sole exception of Antifa groups in Israel) support Zionism outright or simply have shitty views on the topic altogether. In my experience they have equally asinine views about anti-black racism, believing it to be a problem with individuals rather than a problem with the institutions that govern society, which they confuse with hate groups. So while the mechanics of these factions differ, the underlying conclusion is the same: fascism poses some sort of overarching, persistent threat to society, and trying to find it and engage in street brawls with it is either an alternative to or necessary for replacing capitalism. Separate from this bizarre and leaderless series of incoherent cults is the wider "black bloc" anarchist network that, both in the US and in Europe, engages in property destruction and looting in order to thwart the police. Without knowing who they are or what they stand for (or if they stand for a coherent single thing at all) it is not worth generalizing about their ideology: they are reduced to the tactics they use and nothing more, namely rioting. So as for rioting as a tactic, I think we should view it as any other tactic: something that might effect change under certain circumstances, but not on its own. The notion that a group of people can break some windows or burn a store down and cause revolutionary change in the system is belied by the fact that far greater destruction to property has taken place during war, economic crises, etc. without suddenly prompting a revolution. If that is the goal, then it is foolish. However, I do believe that these kinds of militant tactics, under specific circumstances, might provide a sort of "force multiplier". The rebellion that is taking place throughout the United States right now is not being driven by the Antifa types or the black bloc types, whether they self-identify as Antifa or agree with the hucksters who speak on their behalf. The people flooding the streets are attempting to throw a wrench in the system. This is true whether they are smashing up department stores, blocking traffic, or even just defying curfews. Note, they all stopped following social distancing as well. It is obvious why: during a massive recession that may soon become a depression, they are watching a white supremacist who openly breaks the law and calls for shooting people egg them on and defend police racism, all while failing to ensure their basic needs are protected. Indeed, the system has actually encouraged that they put themselves at greater risk of the pandemic by returning to work as an alternative to ensuring they are bailed out and protected from landlords, etc. In essence, legitimate governance had already collapsed before the mass rebellion and the rebellion is simply a response to that crisis of legitimacy which calls for the government to be replaced. In such a circumstance, I believe that "black bloc tactics" could potentially lend to further undermining attempts to legitimate local government as it collapses by forcing police and others to spread their resources thin until acceptable concessions are made. Indeed, these tactics were seen as the price of doing business when the U.S. toppled Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and were encouraged by the CIA when fomenting rebellion in Nicaragua. So, in short, while "black bloc tactics" might not *create* a revolution or a rebellion, I can see the argument that they may support a rebellion that is already taking place. And I think we should all agree, whether we support these sorts of tactics or not, the wider rebellion that is taking place should get the support of anyone who opposes capitalism as a whole. The question is what will ensure that it will actually translate into real world victories beyond burned out stores. Amith R. Gupta On Wed, Jun 3, 2020 at 7:47 PM Mark Lause via Marxism < marxism@lists.csbs.utah.edu> wrote: > ******************** POSTING RULES & NOTES ******************** > #1 YOU MUST clip all extraneous text when replying to a message. > #2 This mail-list, like most, is publicly & permanently archived. > #3 Subscribe and post under an alias if #2 is a concern. > ***************************************************************** > > If they think that, are they proposing to overthrow that government with > baseball bats, because I have news for them . . . . > _________________________________________________________ > Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm > Set your options at: > https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/amithrgupta%40gmail.com > _________________________________________________________ Full posting guidelines at: http://www.marxmail.org/sub.htm Set your options at: https://lists.csbs.utah.edu/options/marxism/archive%40mail-archive.com
