What is Antifa? Origins, tactics, and why Trump labeled it a terror outfit

Antifa, short for “anti-fascist”, is not a traditional organisation with leaders, membership lists, or headquarters.

It is, instead, a loose, secretive network of activists organised into autonomous local cells. Its members and supporters often dress in black and cover their faces at rallies, where they confront white supremacists, racists, and groups they consider fascist.

Antifa: Tracing its roots and rise

Antifa's origins trace back to anti-fascist resistance in Nazi Germany and Mussolini’s Italy before World War II.

It was only in the 1980s that activists began demonstrating in the US against racist skinheads, Ku Klux Klan members, and neo-Nazis. One of the earliest American groups to formally adopt the name was Rose City Antifa, founded in Portland, Oregon, in 2007.

According to Merriam-Webster, “antifa” first entered English usage in 1946, borrowed from a German phrase used by anti-Nazi organisers.

Decades later, the movement found itself in the spotlight after Trump’s 2016 election, which activists saw as emboldening the alt-right. By 2017, Antifa had gained prominence as a counter-force at right-wing rallies, particularly in Charlottesville, Virginia, where white supremacists clashed violently with counter-protesters.

Antifa’s presence has been most visible in street clashes.

In 2016, at least five people were stabbed when activists confronted neo-Nazis at a Sacramento rally. In 2017, Antifa members at the University of California, Berkeley hurled bricks, pipes, and incendiary devices at alt-right demonstrators. In 2019, William Van Spronsen, a self-proclaimed Antifa activist, tried to bomb an ICE detention facility in Tacoma, Washington, with a propane tank before being shot dead by police.

These incidents reinforced claims by Trump and his allies that the movement poses a national threat. His former attorney general, William Barr, had said in 2020 that Antifa’s actions amounted to “domestic terrorism.”

Antifa groups often adopt “black bloc” tactics, dressing in black and masking their faces to make it difficult for police to identify individuals. Their ideology overlaps with anarchist currents, often criticising capitalism and state institutions, such as the police.

According to Antifa supporters, their mission is to protect marginalised groups from racist and fascist violence. Although the movement, at times, joins forces with Occupy Wall Street or Black Lives Matter on specific issues, it is not formally affiliated with them.

It should also be pointed out that Antifa has been condemned not just by conservatives but also by mainstream Democrats. After clashes in Berkeley in 2017, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi had denounced “the violent actions of people calling themselves antifa” and urged their arrest.

Trump’s long-running push

Trump has long blamed Antifa for unrest and violence in the US, including the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot. In fact, it was during the nationwide protests against racial injustice in 2020 that he first announced that the US would designate Antifa as a terrorist organisation.

It was a largely symbolic move, as federal law, as it should be noted, provides no mechanism to label domestic groups as terrorist organisations formally. At the time, Trump's own FBI director Wray had testified that “Antifa is an ideology, not an organisation,” stressing that its amorphous structure makes it incompatible with a formal terror designation.

Five years later, Trump’s latest announcement could be described as his most forceful action against Antifa to date, clearly showing his determination to spotlight the group as a political adversary.

“Antifa is terrible. There are other groups. We have some pretty radical groups, and they got away with murder,” Trump said from the Oval Office earlier this week, without citing evidence.