My adopted father was an immigrant, enlisted in the Army Air Force during World War II, naturalized a United States of America citizen, part of “The Greatest Generation.” Last week, he and I were branded by President Donald Trump as terrorists. My adopted father because he fought against the fascist governments of Italy, Germany and Japan. Me because I believe that fascism is not the government form that we as Americans envision.
Antifa is not an organization, there are no membership lists, membership fees or structure. It is an idea, an ideology that opposes the formation of fascist government and its precepts. It is a contraction that means “against fascism.”
Protests are a protected American staple. Individual protestors have at times acted violently and done property vandalism. These type activities are crimes, not terrorist acts, and should be prosecuted with existing laws by the appropriate local authorities.
Now is not the time to support authoritarian tactics and silence citizens that may disagree with a particular idea, or person.
On March 24, 1945, the U.S. War Department issued Army Talk Orientation Fact Sheet 64 entitled “Fascism.” In part, it instructed: “It was easy for the fascists to promise all things to all people before they were in power. … They had intended in advance to break some, and they did break those they had made to the middle classes, the workers and the farmers.”
It continues: “The people run democratic governments, but fascist governments run the people.”
It seems to me that most Americans would be opposed to this type of government, that anti-fascism, “antifa,” should be promoted, not branded terrorism.
Paul Southland