ANtiFA
FASCISTS AND ANTIFASCISTS COMPETE IN THE STREETS AND IN THE MEDIA
by Kelly Kenoyer
b
eneath the surface of liberal Eugene, there’s a war brewing. And both sides
are recruiting.
The two sides say they consider it a war for the very soul of this nation.
They both track their opponents and sometimes participate in violent
protests. They’re both grassroots, and while the issue is national in scale,
both sides are very, very local.
Propaganda is being plastered on telephone poles around town, marking
territory — safe spaces for fascists or anti-fascists respectively. Some
from the “alt-right” (a term coined by white nationalist Richard Spencer
to disguise the movement’s racist and fascist intentions) have even dropped racist propaganda at
the Eugene Weekly office, or replaced newspapers in our stands with hate-filled posters.
Antifa, or antifascism, is an ideology — or an action, depending on whom you ask — meant
to organize against fascism.
Dante Douglas, a local antifascist activist and member
of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), says,
“When we talk about modern fascism, what we’re usually
talking about is a combination of reactionary thought,
militant organization and far right ideology.”
“The modern fascist in America is overwhelmingly
privileged,” he says, pointing to the alt-right rally in
Charlottesville, Virginia, in August as a case study in the
alt-right political spectrum — "a combination of things like
the KKK, The American Nazi party, the national socialism
movement — they’re the other American Nazi party.”
“A lot of those people call themselves proud fascists,
but a lot of them don’t,” he says, adding that many call
themselves fighters for "european identity."
Those who organize against fascism call themselves
antifascist or antifa. They do it, they say, to protect their
communities and their families from harm. To antifa,
fascism is a very real threat not only to their lives, but also
to American democracy. And the best way to fight it is with
an entire community behind them.
On the surface, there are many similarities between the
two sides. Both participate in sometimes violent protests.
Both attempt to silences voices that they oppose. Both
track and monitor members of the opposing side. But
antifascism is a reaction to fascism: a reaction to the very
real threat to democracy that has historically led to wars,
violence and even genocide around the world.
Antifa and the Media
Many of the sources EW talked to for this article were
reluctant to use their full names. In some cases, they even
used fake names or initials to protect their identities.
These activists fear that if they’re identified, they and their
families could be hurt or killed by local fascist actors.
10
October 19, 2017 • eugeneweekly.com
“Black bloc” protest attire serves the same purpose:
protecting identities. That’s the standard outfit associated
with antifa — wearing black head to toe, including a
bandana or facemask to hide faces.
Alice is a University of Oregon student and an antifascist
activist. Her name has been changed to protect her identity.
She’s worried that if her true identity is out there, she may
face problems at work or have racists knocking on her
front door, aiming to hurt her or her family.
“Masking up just helps protect your identity and helps
protect you from getting doxed,” she says. “I do not want
to get doxed, I want to stay safe and keep my family safe,
and that’s just one way of doing that.”
Doxing, the act of searching out and publishing
identifying information about an individual, typically
with malicious intent, is a common tactic used by both
antifascists and fascists.
The use of fake names or just first names in this article
is a safety measure requested by those interviewed to
prevent such attacks.
“I get confused by people who don’t support antifa,”
Alice says. “It’s antifascist. I don’t understand how you
can not support that unless you’re a fascist.”
Alice says that antifa has a reputation for being violent
thanks to the media, but says that reputation is unfair.
"They focus on the violence," she says. "But you can put
up a sticker that says Nazis aren’t welcome here, and that
is the same act of fighting fascism that one can make more
easily than finding a Nazi and punching them in the face.”
Antifascist organizers generally consider antifa and
antifascism to be synonyms, but the media often frames
antifa as a violent group and antifascism as a belief. This
distinction primarily comes from outside viewers, and
doesn’t extend to how most antifascists view themselves.
The media does not have a great reputation with most
KATHERINE, CREATOR OF THE
FRIENDLY ANARCHISM PODCAST
antifa organizers. Some groups outright refuse to speak to
the media, including Eugene Antifa. Douglas says that’s
because the media gets antifa wrong so much of the time.
“They don’t know how to report on decentralized groups,”
he says.
Standard media practice generally involves reaching
out to the representative or leader of an organization to get
a sense of that organization’s policies. With decentralized
antifa, that’s not an option.
The anonymity that most antifascist activists seek
can rub the media the wrong way. Journalists prefer that
sources use real names unless absolutely necessary, but
antifascist activists often refuse to share that information.
Black bloc attire is also frequently conflated with antifa,
but black bloc is actually a protest tactic, not affiliated with
any political ideology. Katherine, creator of the Friendly
Anarchism podcast, says, “The black bloc thing has to do
with avoiding state repression and avoiding things like
losing your job or trying to keep your family safe.”
“It also looks kind of scary, and that’s the point, because
you’re facing down terrible people, and we are the last line
between non-violent protesters and violence,” she says.
“Antifa are taking punches; they’re taking flagpoles to
their backs. They’re standing there in front of people who