“Bray’s book is many things: the first English-language
transnational history of antifa, a how-to for would-be activists, and
a record of advice from anti-Fascist organizers past and present …
Focused and persuasive.” — Daniel Penny, The New Yorker
In the wake of
tragic events in Charlottesville, VA, and Donald Trump’s initial
refusal to denounce the white nationalists behind it all, the
“antifa” opposition movement is suddenly appearing everywhere.
But what is it, precisely? And where did it come from?
As long as there has
been fascism, there has been anti-fascism — also known as “antifa.”
Born out of resistance to Mussolini and Hitler in Europe during the
1920s and ’30s, the antifa movement has suddenly burst into the
headlines amidst opposition to the Trump administration and the
alt-right. They could be seen in news reports, often clad all in
black with balaclavas covering their faces, fighting police at the
presidential inauguration, on California college campuses protesting
right-wing speakers, and, most recently, on the streets of
Charlottesville, VA, protecting, among others, a group of ministers
including Cornel West from neo-Nazi violence. (West would later tell
reporters, “The anti-fascists saved our lives.”)
Simply, antifa aims
to deny fascists the opportunity to promote their oppressive
politics, and to protect tolerant communities from acts of violence
promulgated by fascists. Critics say shutting down political
adversaries is anti-democratic; antifa adherents argue that the
horrors of fascism must never be allowed the slightest chance to
triumph again.
In a smart and
gripping investigation, historian and former Occupy Wall Street
organizer Mark Bray provides a detailed survey of the full history of
anti-fascism from its origins to the present day — the first
transnational history of postwar anti-fascism in English. Based on
interviews with anti-fascists from around the world, Antifa
details the tactics of the movement and the philosophy behind it,
offering insight into the growing but little-understood resistance
fighting back against fascism in all its guises.