Blaze News original: Remember when gaslighting elitists called Antifa a myth? Here's a reminder that Antifa is all too real.
In July 2020, far-left U.S. Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) — chairman of the House Judiciary Committee at that time — said on camera incredulously that Antifa violence that had been documented night after night that summer in Portland, Oregon, is a "myth."
A month before, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) — who now chairs the Judiciary Committee — blasted Nadler for calling Antifa "imaginary."
But it does no good for those who sit in power on the far left to acknowledge Antifa's lawlessness because its militant, psychotic pseudo-soldiers do the dirty work of leftist elites.
"They're not imaginary; they're real," Jordan said to House members, adding that "to have the chair of the Judiciary Committee, on the House floor, say ... these words ... 'imaginary things like Antifa.' They are far from imaginary. And there are people in every major city in this country who know that, and yet the chair of the Judiciary Committee just made that statement. That is scary."
What's more, during a September 2020 presidential debate, then-Democrat nominee Joe Biden told then-President Donald Trump that FBI director Christopher Wray said "Antifa's an idea, not an organization."
While Wray confirmed in testimony before Congress earlier in September 2020 that "Antifa is a real thing," he did say it's "not a group or an organization. It's a movement, or an ideology may be one way of thinking of it."
Well, readers of Blaze News know all too well that Antifa is all too real. We know for a fact that the collection of violent, black-clad left-wing militants is organized in regional and local groups throughout the U.S. — and they view it as their calling to attack police, set fires, destroy property, and roam the streets looking to intimidate all those who get in their way.
Rose City Antifa brutally attacks an unidentified conservative-aligned man at Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Oregon, June 29, 2019.Photo by Moriah Ratner/Getty Images
Andy Ngo, a Portland-based journalist, is seen covered in unknown substance after unidentified Rose City Antifa members attacked him on June 29, 2019 in Portland, Oregon. Photo by Moriah Ratner/Getty Images
But it does no good for those who sit in power on the far left to acknowledge Antifa and its lawlessness because Antifa members — psychotic pseudo-soldiers one and all — do the dirty work of leftist elites.
The following are a few stark reminders of why it's still crucial to deal swiftly and harshly with Antifa.
Antifa militants caught on stealth video after street 'action' gathering in group to discuss strategy — and they warn each other to keep things secret
Conservative radio host Jason Rantz of KTTH-AM posted truly enlightening cellphone video — apparently recorded on the sly — showing a group of "radical activists, including Antifa" holding an outdoor meeting in Seattle on the night of April 16, 2021, following their usual violent street hijinks.
During their chat, the "comrades" — a term actually uttered by one freedom fighter in the clip — discuss strategy, pat themselves on the back after they "fought with the pigs," and emphasize not to discuss with anyone that they've met or their activities, as well as other methods to keep authorities at bay.
Shockingly, one militant tells the group that "autonomous doesn't mean unorganized. So we do have to make decisions as a crew, as a team." Seriously, since when do "myths" and "ideas" band together like ... an organization?
Another militant suggests that next time out, they divide themselves into groups dressed as "black bloc" and "plain clothes" in order to prevent police from identifying members according to attire. In addition, another militant reminds members to look at the "Seattle [Black Lives Matter] calendar" and other groups' activities to keep informed.
Prior to departing, one militant adds, "Once we de-bloc and leave, you weren't at this autonomous action. So you don't go home and talk about it. You didn't see anything; you didn't talk to anybody." Another group member chimes in, "Our general policy is, 'I didn't see s**t or know s**t.' If somebody asks you what you did Friday night — 'nothin'.'"
Others also offer tips about phones, primarily to keep them turned off, to "get a burner if you can," to avoid phones "tied to you personally," and to make them password-protected with "no bio, no face, no thumb."
Toward the end, another woman tells the group, "While we're not necessarily out in the streets every night, we are doing actions every night. We're sharing information, we're watching livestreams, we're educating ourselves, we're educating our peers, our families, our friends. So keep that momentum up." She adds that there's plenty to be done to aid the "revolution."
The militants also express a desire for "more organization" as well as concerns about being "infiltrated," especially since they're in a "vulnerable location" and "the longer we stay here, the easier it is for them to start picking out people as they walk out."
Trump supporter infiltrates Antifa group, collects recordings of 'comrades' making threats against police: 'Let's kill some cops'
A supporter of former President Donald Trump told KGO-TV that he infiltrated an Antifa group in Sonoma County, California, and collected recordings of the far-left violent militants making threats against police and even preparing major action for May 1, 2021 — also known as May Day.
Here's a sampling:
Group Leader: "It's May Day, baby, like come out and take, take somethin' over with us, I don't, I don't [bleep]-ing know."
Member: "Let's kill people [laughs]."
Group Leader: "Let's kill some cops."
The Trump supporter who infiltrated Antifa appeared on camera in an interview with the station, but his face and voice were disguised. He told KGO he saved messages, documents, and recordings of the Antifa group's meetings.
You can view a video report about the infiltration here; it includes KGO's interview with the Trump supporter who infiltrated Antifa.
The infiltrator gave KGO the group's "target list," which included former Santa Rosa Police Officer Barry Brodd, who testified for the defense as an expert on use of force in the murder trial of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin in the killing of George Floyd.
Four days after Brodd's testimony defending Chauvin, the station said masked figures in black threw a severed pig head and pig blood at the house where Brodd used to live.
The infiltrator told the station, "So I saw that they were here, I read their manifesto, and I could tell that they were a threat to the community, and somebody needed to do something about this."
More from KGO:
The manifesto posted online for SoCo [Sonoma County] Radical Action or SRA says, "Do not hesitate, do not wait ... the brick in the street is meant to be thrown! The paint in the can is meant to be sprayed! The cop in your head is meant to be killed!"
The Trump supporter was able to join the group that communicates through the encrypted messaging app Wickr.
The infiltrator added to the station that, "I said, 'Comrade, you know ... I want to smash the system the same as you,' [to] make them not feel alone, because that's what they really want to hear, to know that there's more people like them."
More from KGO:
The I-Team has learned the group's leader who goes by the screen name "Marb" is a 25-year-old college student, who was arrested for "felony assault on a police officer" last year at this Oakland riot after the death of George Floyd; the district attorney declined to file charges. The Trump supporter says he made this recording in March, when Marb discussed naming the group "SoCo Antifa." [...]
The infiltrator tells the I-Team he copied what the group calls its "target list," people they want to "dox" — to publish their private information, their addresses and phone numbers, to surveil them for possible vandalism. After his testimony, they placed Brodd at the top of the list and within an hour of the attack on his former house, Marb is back on Wickr at 3:48 a.m. telling the group, "Hey y'all, late notice, but some comrades took action at a house owned by Barry Brodd and if someone could swing by in the morning and get pictures, our comrades would be very grateful!"
The target list also includes the head of the deputy sheriffs' union — or "killer deputies," as Antifa calls them — as well as officers involved in fatal confrontations and Trump supporters like Sandy Metzger, the station said. Metzger, who heads the Santa Rosa Republican Women Federated, told KGO that she "really came out strongly against Antifa and [Black Lives Matter]."
When the station told her that she's on the target list, Metzger said it does concern her "a little bit, but that's not going to stop me from speaking out. Somebody has to speak out. And I feel very strong about some of these things." The recordings show the group has already checked out Metzger's house, KGO reported.
The infiltrator told the station he's been in touch with the sheriff's department and Santa Rosa police about the potential threats.
KGO's Dan Noyes said Marb refused his attempts for an interview with him, but the infiltrator actually intercepted a message from the group leader about "Dan Noyes at ABC7 asking about SRA. ...To firmly restate our position, nobody, myself included, should cooperate with press or cops."
The infiltrator added to the station that his interactions with SoCo Radical Action began last year — and he wanted to do something about the group.
"It felt like seeing Antifa getting sort of a pass all the time from government," he told KGO, "saying they don't exist, saying that they're a myth, saying that they're just an idea. You know, when obviously, they are very real, and they're a big threat."
The station reported that since it has been working on the story, Marb has been taking down his social media, both the public and private accounts.
Antifa militants arrested, charged for physically attacking Trump supporters — and they're accused of organizing into groups to carry out crimes
San Diego prosecutors on Dec. 6, 2021, charged multiple Antifa militants with conspiracy to commit a riot, saying they physically attacked supporters of former President Donald Trump the previous January, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
The kicker? A criminal complaint said the arrestees "are self-identified to be affiliated with Anti-fascists or Antifa" and began organizing themselves into San Diego- and Los Angeles-based groups a week before a pro-Trump "Patriot March" on Jan. 9, the paper said. Pretty nifty trick for "an idea, not an organization" and a "myth."
The office of District Attorney Summer Stephan, citing video evidence, said "overwhelmingly the violence in this incident was perpetrated by the Antifa affiliates and was not a mutual fray with both sides crossing out of lawful First Amendment expression into riot and violence,” the Union-Tribune said.
Videographer Sean Carmitchel recorded Antifa attacking people with pepper spray, sticks, a wooden folding chair, punches, and kicks — assaults prosecutors described in the complaint, the paper said, adding that several attacks noted in the complaint appear to match incidents recorded and shared online, such as an Antifa militant pepper-spraying a dog and its owner.
Those arraigned in San Diego Superior Court were with a group arrested in raids by police officers and sheriff’s deputies across Southern California, the Union-Tribune reported.
You can view a video report here about the Antifa violence in San Diego.
A follow-up Blaze News story in July reported that a San Diego judge threw the book at eight violent Antifa militants in connection with the January 2021 incident, bringing the total sentenced to 12.
You can view a video report here about the sentences.
Antifa rioters caught on video fighting Chicago police outside Israeli consulate
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Blaze Media national correspondent Julio Rosas covered firsthand Antifa militants fighting Chicago police outside the consulate of Israel on Aug. 20 amid protests against the Biden-Harris administration's handling of the Israel-Hamas war. There were calls on social media to "make it great like '68," a reference to the riots during the 1968 Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
Protesters wearing masks and all-black clothing raged not only against Democrats but also against the March on the DNC, the main organizer for protests this week — for being too peaceful. They argued that peaceful marches with help from the police betray the movement to "free Palestine."
After rallying outside the Israeli consulate, the crowd of around 300 started to march straight into a police line, after which a large fight broke out as police pushed and shoved the Antifa marchers back. At least one Antifa member was smacked in the mouth by a police baton. Multiple arrests were made as police grabbed marchers who refused to leave the area.
The protesters who were not initially arrested after the clash gathered themselves into a formation and held a standoff in the street with police, who had now vastly outnumbered the smaller crowd. On the other side of the police line, a few pro-Israel protesters rallied but left at the request of police for their safety.
Eventually, the Black Bloc marchers started walking around downtown, with police following them to ensure they stayed on the sidewalk. The protesters made it onto a street and refused to disperse. Police then declared the remaining crowd to be an unlawful assembly and moved in to arrest the remaining marchers who did not leave after the declaration was made.
Antifa radical arrested for allegedly setting off nail bomb outside Alabama attorney general's office
A radical leftist was arrested April 10 in connection with a February bombing outside the office of Steve Marshall, Alabama's attorney general — a Republican — in Montgomery. Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert, 26, of Irondale was indicted on two felony counts of malicious use of an explosive and possession of an unregistered destructive device.
Calvert, an anti-Israel "pansexual" and self-described engineer, apparently reckons himself part of the left-wing extremist group Antifa, which former President Donald Trump suggested in 2020 should be designated a domestic terrorist organization. Weeks ahead of the incident, Calvert showcased the same Antifa propaganda that was later found near the bomb site along with pro-abortion and LGBT agitprop.
The nail bomb was detonated around 3:42 a.m. Feb. 24. Marshall revealed in a statement that "thankfully, no staff or personnel were injured by the explosion." Court documents alleged that Calvert was spotted making his way to the AG's office at 3:35 a.m. There was an explosion several minutes later.
Prosecutors indicated that one of the stickers Calvert allegedly posted near the bomb site read, "SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL ANTIFA." In a Jan. 10 video he originally shared to his TikTok page, referred to in his charging document, Calvert shows off stickers "of identical design to the stickers placed by the subject in and around the Alabama Statehouse and downtown Montgomery," along with stickers that read, "Smash the patriarchy," "Anti-fascism is community defense," and "Queer liberation, not rainbow capitalism."
Prosecutors emphasized that "Calvert is violent, and he is dangerous, just as he said. If Calvert is released, the danger to the community from a second offense is greatly increased." The DOJ noted that if convicted, Calvert faces a mandatory minimum of five years in prison and a maximum penalty of 20 years behind bars.
Five Antifa extremists charged with domestic terrorism
Five Antifa extremists were arrested and charged with domestic terrorism in December 2022 after Georgia law enforcement finally responded to their violent months-long campaign aimed at halting the construction of a new police training center in Dekalb County's South River Forest.
The Georgia Bureau of Investigation announced that a task force composed of GBI agents, Atlanta police, the FBI, the DeKalb County Police Department, and other agencies executed a successful operation on Dec. 13 to remove leftist barricades from the entrances to Atlanta's new $90 million police training center and to clear the area of criminal activity.
The operation was prompted by "ongoing criminal activity at the site location," including "carjacking, various crimes against persons, destruction of property, arson, and attacks against public safety officials," wrote GBI spokesman Nelly Miles.
Leftist attacks and threats in the area have become a common occurrence in recent months.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in October that the extremists — keen on halting construction of what they called "Cop City" on city property — hurled Molotov cocktails at police. The leftist extremists reportedly also threatened contractors, destroyed equipment, and vandalized offices. Richard Porter claimed that when he stopped briefly in the area, he was set upon by people apparently living in the woods and wearing "camouflaged stuff." The extremists allegedly threw a "gas bomb" at Porter and then torched his truck.
WXIA reported that firefighters on Dec. 10 were dispatched to the area to put out a fire apparently set by the leftists. However, when they attempted to extinguish the flames, they were struck by rocks and firecrackers.
While leftist extremists reportedly pelted police and first responders alike with rocks and bottles on Dec. 13, police appear to have answered back with pepper balls.
The task force that addressed the extremist threat arrested 22-year-old Francis Carroll of Maine, 25-year-old Nicholas Olson of Nebraska, 25-year-old Serena Hertel of California, 20-year-old Leonardo Vioselle of Georgia, and 22-year-old Arieon Robinson of Wisconsin, each of whom have been charged with domestic terrorism. Vioselle was the only local among the five. The leftist extremists, held in jail without a bond, were also hit with various other charges, including criminal trespass, aggravated assault, obstruction, and interference with government property. The GBI indicated that police found "explosive devices, gasoline, and road flares" in their search of the "area of concern."
Antifa poet convicted of stabbing Proud Boy members at New York state Capitol during January 6 protest
A journalist poet tied to Antifa on Oct. 7, 2022, was convicted of stabbing Proud Boy members at a Jan. 6, 2021, protest at the New York state Capitol. Alexander Contompasis was convicted by an Albany jury of first-degree assault and other charges.
While the rioting at the U.S. Capitol unfolded, surveillance video captured a fight between Trump supporters and Antifa supporters broke at the New York state Capitol protest. The Times Union obtained video of the attack, which showed two stabbings. A person was seen on the video swinging wildly at Trump supporters before police swept in to break up the fight. The attacker walked off as the video ends.
Multiple arrests were made in relation to the incident, and one of the victims suffered an eviscerated bowel. Police said they found a knife in Contompasis' car that they believed was used in the assault.
One of the stabbing victims said an Antifa member said to him after he was stabbed, "I'm coming for you. I know who you are. I know where you live." The suspect's attorney argued in his defense that he was just defending himself from an "unprovoked" Proud Boys attack. You can view video of the knife attack here.
Police later identified the suspect as Contompasis and charged him with the attack. Prosecutors noted that the man had published posts on social media supportive of the Antifa political group. He also identified himself as an independent journalist and a poet. He claimed that he was not a member of Antifa.
In addition to the first-degree assault charge, Contompasis was convicted of first-degree attempted assault, second-degree assault, and felony possession of a weapon. Prison records indicate the earliest date Contompasis could be released is Nov. 21, 2039.
Antifa front and center amid 'Night of Rage' across America after US Supreme Court overturns Roe V. Wade
Protests erupted across America after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, culminating in a Night of Rage in major cities on June 24, 2022 — and Antifa was front and center.
Antifa-linked pro-abortion group Jane's Revenge vowed to undertake the "night of rage," and black-bloc protesters wielding umbrellas marched through the streets of Washington, D.C. The group chanted slogans such as, "If abortion ain’t safe, neither are you," "If we don’t get it, burn it down," "Every city, every town, burn the precinct to the ground," and "F*** the church, f*** the state, we won't let them decide our fate." The protesters burned American flags. You can view related videos here, here, here, and here.
Commenting on a video recorded in Los Angeles, journalist Andy Ngo wrote that "a rioter at the #Antifa pro-abortion riot" used a "homemade flamethrower to try to burn police. Antifa also throw an explosive mortar firework right at @LAPDHQ officers. A suspect who tried to escape was arrested."
In Seattle, Antifa attacked and pepper-sprayed a pro-life woman, according to Post Millennial reporter Katie Daviscourt. In addition, journalist Jonathan Choe posted video and wrote the following: "I was trying to record Antifa trying to break windows. Then the mutual aid far-left activists spotted me and pointed me out. This black bloc group may be [the] most emboldened crew ever. Knocked my phone down, but I picked up right away. Had to out run them. I’m OK."
Antifa reportedly assaulted videographer Mason Lake while he was covering Night of Rage protests in Portland, Oregon.
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