Antifa: A Mindset

The National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7) “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence” is a threat to our democracy

I wrote about the National Security Presidential Memorandum 7 (NSPM-7) “Countering Domestic Terrorism and Organized Political Violence,” and its threat to anyone who opposes 34 policies, a couple of days ago. 34 has ordered Attorney General Pam Bondi to implement MAGA’s anti-democracy creed.

The memorandum broadly and without definitions targets “anti-Americanism, anti-capitalism, and anti-Christianity,” references that are so vague they are a catch-all for any opposing idea, for anyone who expresses opposition, and for any movement that protests against MAGA and their fascistic politics. If you support “mass immigration,” NSPM-7 also wants to prosecute you.

While the federal government has tremendous powers, we need not be afraid to protect our democracy from fascists. We have attended this party in various forms in the past. There was the McCarthy era, the “Red Scare” from the late 1940s to the mid-1950s, when anyone accused of being a communist or supporting communism was targeted for enforcement. The fascist tactics included public hearings, blacklists, guilt by association, and the “lavender scare.” The lavender scare resulted in the systematic targeting and firing of gay and lesbian government employees.

From 1956 to 1971, the FBI’s secret COINTELPRO program (Counter-Intelligence Program) sought to “disrupt” and “neutralize” domestic political organizations that the FBI determined were a threat to the country. Their targets included the Communist Party of the USA, civil rights leaders, especially Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, Black nationalist groups, especially The Black Panther Party, anti-Vietnam War organizers and the “new left,” and the Ku Klux Klan and other white hate groups.

COINTELPRO ran parallel to President Richard Nixon’s own operations that targeted his political opponents. There was Nixon’s “enemies list,” the weaponization of federal agencies, such as the IRS, that harassed and threatened journalist Daniel Schorr and others. Nixon audited Schorr every year of his presidency. There was also Nixon’s “Plumbers” unit, an effort to stop government leaks and to commit “dirty tricks,” such as the Watergate break-in.

If you are not Antifa (anti-fascist), you are a fascist or, at the very least, fascist adjacent.

I have been criticizing 34 ferociously ever since he took office the first time, and I have been surveilled by government agencies in the past. I have seen some of my files. They know who I am and where to find me. I assume I am being monitored today. In addition to my Substack and other online posts, I do not shy away from writing The White House to express my displeasure with 34 in no uncertain terms.

I understand anyone’s reluctance to be front-facing in these times, but there are ways to protest more quietly. Contact your local, state, and federal representatives. Keep bugging them. They work for you. Bug the hell out of them. Engage in public protests that oppose 34 policies. Sign and circulate forward-thinking petitions. Give contributions to like-minded organizations and like-minded independent news gatherers. These are things we can do individually and collectively to save democracy in the United States.