The Take

How Antifa hysteria took over the US 2020 election

Where did this misconception of Antifa as a shadowy cabal of leftists come from?

A counterprotester confronts members of the Proud Boys and other right-wing demonstrators during an 'End Domestic Terrorism' rally in Portland, Ore, on Saturday, August 17, 2019. Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said the situation was 'potentially dangerous and volatile' but as of early afternoon most of the right-wing groups had left the area via a downtown bridge and police used officers on bikes and in riot gear to keep black clad, helmet and mask-wearing anti-fascist protesters - known as Antifa - from following them [Noah Berger/Reuters]

With the United States elections kicking off in earnest with the first presidential debate, President Donald Trump has focused much of his campaign rhetoric on mask-wearing, window-breaking Antifa as a new American enemy. But as long as fascism has existed, so too has the anti-fascist movement.
So where did this misconception of Antifa as a shadowy cabal of leftists come from, and what is Antifa in reality?

In this episode:

Natasha Lennard (@natashalennard), a columnist at The Intercept, and the author of Being Numerous: Essays on Non-Fascist Life.

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The team:

Negin Owliaei and Alexandra Locke produced this episode with Abigail Ony Nwaohuocha, Dina Kesbeh, Priyanka Tilve, Amy Walters, Ney Alvarez, and Malika Bilal.

Alex Roldan is The Take’s sound designer. Natalia Aldana is the engagement producer. Stacey Samuel is The Take‘s executive producer, and Graelyn Brashear is Al Jazeera’s head of audio.

Source: Al Jazeera