Notes
1 U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr said violence at the riots was the work of “far-left extremist groups using antifa-like tactics.” President Donald Trump tweeted on Saturday that “It’s ANTIFA and the Radical Left. Don’t lay the blame on others!” Trump on Sunday tweeted that he planned to designate antifa as a terrorist organization. They offered no evidence that organized extremists groups directly instigated events that led to arrests in Minneapolis or elsewhere. Source: Videos, threats, but few signs protests have been stoked by ‘outsider’ extremist groups, NBC News, May 31, 2020 https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/security/videos-threats-few-signs-protests-have-been-stoked-outsider-extremist-n1220451) accessed 6/7/2020)
2 An example of the outcome of such inciting to violence can be seen in the recent situation in Klamath Falls, Oregon, where well-armed anti-protestors turned out to greet an “Antifa Invasion” that never occurred. (Source: In Klamath Falls, Oregon, victory declared over antifa, which never showed up. Towns from Washington state to Indiana have seen armed groups begin patrolling the streets after rumors spread on social media about an antifa invasion. https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/social-media/klamath-falls-oregon-victory-declared-over-antifa-which-never-showed-n1226681?utm_source=pocket-newtab, accessed 6/11/2020) and, How The Antifa Fantasy Spread In Small Towns Across The US, Buzzfeed News, https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/annehelenpetersen/antifa-rumors-george-floyd-protests?utm_source=pocket-newtab, accessed 6/14/2020)
3 Twitter posted the following response to a Tweet by President Trump (one of several): “This Tweet violated the Twitter rules about glorifying violence. However, Twitter has determined that it may be in the public’s interest for the Tweet to remain accessible. Learn more.” (Twitter, May 29, 2020)
4 The autocratic governments in Europe during the 1920’s and 1930’s led to resistance movements (“Antifa”) and, ultimately, purges such as the Holocaust. (Source: United States Holocaust Museum, https://www.ushmm.org/antisemitism/what-is-antisemitism/origins-of-neo-nazi-and-white-supremacist-terms-and-symbols, accessed 6/12/2020)
5 Such autocratic governments were referred to as Fascist. Merriam Webster’s Dictionary defines Fascism: (1.) a political philosophy, movement, or regime (such as that of the Fascisti) that exalts nation and often race above the individual and that stands for a centralized autocratic government headed by a dictatorial leader, severe economic and social regimentation, and forcible suppression of opposition (Source: https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fascism, accessed 6/7/2020)