“Antifa” is a shortened form of the term anti-fascism. Fascism is an ideology developed and implemented by Benito Mussolini’s regime in Italy from 1922-1943. Fascism is a centralized, right-wing extremist form of government, dictator-led and paramilitary-backed. Fascist dictators promote racism, violence and genocide and suppress the rights of free speech and free press. 

In the early 1900s, when Mussolini organized the United Fascist Party, he spread his nationalist ideology throughout Europe. In the 1930s, when Adolf Hitler became the fascist dictator of Germany, German anti-fascist sentiment grew in response. Anti-fascism, or antifa, comes from the German antifaschistisch. 

The reality is that democracy and fascism cannot coexist. Democracy literally means “rule of the people.” The three documents that are foundational to democracy, the Declaration of Independence , the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, are based on the idea that all people have certain fundamental rights that governments are responsible to protect. The First Amendment to the Constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, speech, the press, peaceful assembly and the right to petition the government. 

In today’s toxic political climate, antifa is incorrectly linked with a political ideology that promotes violence. The Trump administration is describing peaceful protesters as antifa terrorists, “the enemy from within.” Nothing could be further from the truth. Protesters are coming together in a peaceful effort to restore constitutional democracy. The antifa terrorist hoax is just another White House conspiracy to try to silence the people who are trying to defend democracy and the rule of law.

Ann Longley
Waterville