Chapter 96: Antifa

361     more than 90 percent . . . Researchers at the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) found: “The vast majority of demonstration events associated with the BLM movement are non-violent. In more than 93% of all demonstrations connected to the movement, demonstrators have not engaged in violence or destructive activity. Peaceful protests are reported in over 2,400 distinct locations around the country. Violent demonstrations, meanwhile, have been limited to fewer than 220 locations—under 10% of the areas that experienced peaceful protests.” Roudabeh Kishi and Sam Jones, “Demonstrations and Political Violence in America: New Data for Summer 2020,” ACLED, September 3, 2020, acleddata.com/report/demonstrations-and-political-violence-america-new-data-summer-2020.

361     comes from . . . to militantly confront . . . Nazism  Mark Hallam, “Trump’s ‘Antifa’ Claims Spark German Dispute,” Deutsche Welle (DW), June 3, 2020, www.dw.com/en/trumps-antifa-accusations-spark-debate-in-germany-the-movements-birthplace/a-53665573.

361     cast Antifa as terrorists  See Nikolaus Wachsmann, Hitler’s Prisons: Legal Terror in Nazi Germany (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 2004), 113; and Remigio Petrocelli, Importing Fascism: The Italian Community’s Fascist Experience in Interwar Scotland (Abingdon, UK: Routledge, 2025), 140. Visit search.worldcat.org/title/53138578 (Hitler’s Prisons) and earch.worldcat.org/title/1482610899(Importing Fascism) to find these books at a library.

361     “. . . designating ANTIFA as a Terrorist Organization”  Donald J. Trump, Twitter, May 31, 2020, 12:23 p.m., x.com/realDonaldTrump/status/1267129644228247552, archived at archive.today, July 15, 2024 capture, archive.ph/B31FY.

361     “Correct decision, which is also long overdue . . .”  Alice Weidel, Twitter, June 1, 2020, 4:40 a.m., x.com/Alice_Weidel/status/1267375457349091328, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/dz3WT

361     “Antifa hates freedom and the rule of law” Geert Wilders, Twitter, June 1, 2020, 2:03 a.m., x.com/geertwilderspvv/status/1267336037967302656, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/TTYxl.

361–362     “They claim to be anti-racists and anti-fascists . . .”  Wilders, Twitter, June 1, 2020, x.com/geertwilderspvv/status/1267336037967302656, archived at archive.ph/wip/TTYxl.

362     “Nice gang there in Amsterdam” Geert Wilders, Twitter, June 1, 2020, 1:17 a.m., x.com/geertwilderspvv/status/1267324479321055234, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/HPfg0.

362     “mob rule” . . . “rioting, looting, arson, and violence” C-SPAN, “President Donald Trump Full Acceptance Speech at 2020 Republican National Convention,” YouTube, August 28, 2020, youtu.be/RhL9iFkBaus?si=o5MOXpGwTajFhjhy, 49:46–50:01 (discussion of “mob rule”), 50:09–50:12 (“rioting, looting, arson and violence”).

362     “the Republican Party” . . . “the voice of the patriotic . . .” C-SPAN, “President Donald Trump Full Acceptance Speech at 2020 Republican National Convention,” youtu.be/RhL9iFkBaus?si=o5MOXpGwTajFhjhy, 53:35–53:42.

362     “Across Europe, these pseudo ‘antifa’ are using violence . . .”  Marine Le Pen, Twitter, April 8, 2021, 5:26 a.m., x.com/MLP_officiel/status/1380089783930748929, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/Ulbpk.

362     “No less than 4,000 crimes per year . . .”  Geert Wilders, Twitter, November 24, 2022, 2:27 a.m., x.com/geertwilderspvv/status/1595680386658492417, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/Ga77B.

362     “are 100% responsible for letting this scum in”  Wilders, Twitter, November 24, 2022, x.com/geertwilderspvv/status/1595680386658492417, archived at archive.ph/wip/Ga77B.

362     assumed executive authority  “What We Know So Far About Tunisia’s Political Crisis,” Al Jazeera, July 26, 2021, www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/26/tunisias-political-crisis-all-you-need-to-know-in-500-words.

362     violent protests . . . and corruption Simon Speakman Cordall, “‘Things Are Getting Worse': Tunisia Protests Rage On as Latest Victim Named,” The Guardian, January 27, 2021, www.theguardian.com/global-development/2021/jan/27/things-are-getting-worse-tunisia-protests-rage-on-as-latest-victim-named; Human Rights Watch, “Tunisia: Police Use Violent Tactics to Quash Protests,” February 5, 2021, www.hrw.org/news/2021/02/05/tunisia-police-use-violent-tactics-quash-protests; News agencies, “Tunisians Protest as COVID Surges, Economy Suffers,” Al Jazeera, July 25, 2021, www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/25/tunisians-protest-as-covid-surges-economy-suffers; and Sharan Grewal, “Kais Saied’s Power Grab in Tunisia,” Brookings Institution, July 26, 2021, www.brookings.edu/articles/kais-saieds-power-grab-in-tunisia. 

362     a “self-coup”  Grewal, “Kais Saied’s Power Grab in Tunisia,” www.brookings.edu/articles/kais-saieds-power-grab-in-tunisia. 

362     suspended parliament and forced the prime minister to resign  “What We Know So Far About Tunisia’s Political Crisis,” Al Jazeera, July 26, 2021, www.aljazeera.com/news/2021/7/26/tunisias-political-crisis-all-you-need-to-know-in-500-words.

362     rule by decree . . . and revised Tunisia’s constitution  Human Rights Watch, “Tunisia: President Intensifies Attacks on Judicial Independence,” February 27, 2023, www.hrw.org/news/2023/02/27/tunisia-president-intensifies-attacks-judicial-independence.

362      “criminal plan” . . . “to change the demographic composition . . .” Kais Saied, speech to Tunisian National Security Council, February 21, 2023, quoted in Jean-Luc Mounier, “Sub-Saharan Migrants in Tunisia Living in ‘Climate of Fear’ After Surge in Racist Attacks,” France 24, March 4, 2023, www.france24.com/en/africa/20230304-living-in-a-climate-of-fear-sub-saharan-migrants-in-tunisia-under-attack.

362     “the successive waves of illegal immigration . . .”  Saied, speech to Tunisian National Security Council, quoted in Mounier, “Sub-Saharan Migrants in Tunisia Living in ‘Climate of Fear’ After Surge in Racist Attacks,” www.france24.com/en/africa/20230304-living-in-a-climate-of-fear-sub-saharan-migrants-in-tunisia-under-attack.

363     “A truck driver was assaulted, beaten . . .” José Antonio Kast Rist, Twitter, February 10, 2022, 6:47 p.m., x.com/joseantoniokast/status/1491921887517044736, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/4s4rU.

363     “raped by two ‘Arabic-speaking’ men” . . . “the government . . .”  Alice Weidel, X, November 10, 2023, 2:25 a.m., x.com/Alice_Weidel/status/1722878040953262106, archived at archive.today, February 9, 2026 capture, archive.ph/wip/HEZ0h.

363     dragged . . . and murdered  Jeff Amy et al., “Police Arrest Man in Killing of Nursing Student at University of Georgia,” Associated Press (AP) News, February 24, 2024, apnews.com/article/woman-dead-university-georgia-augusta-nursing-student-1e41b14c2d1e7c4889bc509abf5b42df; and Jeff Amy et al., “The Killing of a Georgia Nursing Student Is Now at the Center of the US Immigration Debate,” AP News, February 27, 2024, apnews.com/article/biden-trump-riley-immigrants-crime-63181cbc7a89fe9fe28b1d0cf84c8b9a.

363      arrested . . . and charged him with murder Amy et al., “Police Arrest Man in Killing of Nursing Student at University of Georgia,” apnews.com/article/woman-dead-university-georgia-augusta-nursing-student-1e41b14c2d1e7c4889bc509abf5b42df; and Amy et al., “The Killing of a Georgia Nursing Student Is Now at the Center of the US Immigration Debate,” apnews.com/article/biden-trump-riley-immigrants-crime-63181cbc7a89fe9fe28b1d0cf84c8b9a.

363     the 16,256 homicides in the United States  January 2024 to December 2024 “Expanded Homicides Reported in the United States,” FBI Crime Data Explorer, last updated September 15, 2025, accessed September 29, 2025, “cde.ucr.cjis.gov/LATEST/webapp/#/pages/explorer/crime/shr.

363     the overwhelming majority . . . by American citizens  While 2024 homicide data is not available by citizenship status, evidence shows that immigrants commit less violent crime (and crime, in general) than U.S.-born people. Jasmine Garsd, “Immigrants Are Less Likely to Commit Crimes Than U.S.-Born Americans, Studies Find,” All Things Considered, NPR, March 8, 2024, www.npr.org/2024/03/08/1237103158/immigrants-are-less-likely-to-commit-crimes-than-us-born-americans-studies-find. Federal data on U.S. district court prosecutions in 2018 show that U.S. citizens accounted for 92.3% of people charged with a violent offense, compared with 1.6% for documented non-U.S. citizens and 4.4% for undocumented non-U.S. citizens. Suzanne M. Strong and Mark Motivans, “Non-U.S. Citizens in the Federal Criminal Justice System, 1998–2018,” U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, NCJ 252647, November 2021, bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/ncfcjs9818.pdf, 7.

363     “an animal” Donald Trump, Michigan’s WFDF radio station, February 27, 2024, quoted in Amy et al., “The Killing of a Georgia Nursing Student Is Now at the Center of the US Immigration Debate,” apnews.com/article/biden-trump-riley-immigrants-crime-63181cbc7a89fe9fe28b1d0cf84c8b9a.

363     “Crooked Joe Biden’s Border INVASION” . . . “killing our citizens!” Donald J. Trump, Truth Social, February 26, 2024, 12:01 p.m., truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/111998854564291670, archived at Wayback Machine, February 27, 2024 capture, web.archive.org/web/20240227210653/http://truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/posts/111998854564291670.

363     “The greatest invasion in history is taking place right here in our country. . .” NBC Chicago, “Donald Trump’s Full Speech at 2024 RNC,” YouTube, July 19, 2024, youtu.be/dLUK_MEJP_M?si=nAYKJgITEQ3w8DIp, 1:02:34–1:02:38.

363     “prisons” or “jails” or “insane asylums”  NBC Chicago, “Donald Trump’s Full Speech at 2024 RNC,” youtu.be/dLUK_MEJP_M?si=nAYKJgITEQ3w8DIp, 1:02:57–1:03:05.

363     “Our crime rate is going up . . .”  NBC Chicago, “Donald Trump’s Full Speech at 2024 RNC,” youtu.be/dLUK_MEJP_M?si=nAYKJgITEQ3w8DIp, 1:03:35–1:03:46.

363     “violent crime” fell from 2022 to 2023  “FBI Releases 2023 Crime in the Nation Statistics,” FBI, Criminal Justice Information Services Division, September 23, 2024, www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-releases-2023-crime-in-the-nation-statistics.

363     fell by 11.6 percent “FBI Releases 2023 Crime in the Nation Statistics,” www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-releases-2023-crime-in-the-nation-statistics.

363     “the largest single year decline” in twenty years Ryan J. Reilly and Ken Dilanian, “Murder and Other Violent Crime Dropped Across the U.S. Last Year, FBI Data Shows,” NBC News, September 23, 2024, www.nbcnews.com/politics/justice-department/violent-crime-dropped-america-last-year-new-fbi-data-shows-rcna172217.

363     fell about 9.4 percent  “FBI Releases 2023 Crime in the Nation Statistics,” www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-releases-2023-crime-in-the-nation-statistics.

363     “property crime” . . . the lowest rate since 1961  Ken Dilanian, “Most People Think the U.S. Crime Rate Is Rising: They’re Wrong.” NBC News, December 16, 2023, www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/people-think-crime-rate-up-actually-down-rcna129585.

363     falling crime rates . . . in 2025 In August 2025, the FBI reported, “National violent crime decreased an estimated 4.5% in 2024 compared to 2023 estimates: Murder and non-negligent manslaughter recorded a 2024 estimated nationwide decrease of 14.9% compared to the previous year. In 2024, the estimated number of offenses in the revised rape category saw an estimated 5.2% decrease. Aggravated assault figures decreased an estimated 3.0% in 2024. Robbery showed an estimated decrease of 8.9% nationally.” “FBI Releases 2024 Reported Crimes in the Nation Statistics,” FBI, Criminal Justice Information Services Division, August 5, 2025, www.fbi.gov/news/press-releases/fbi-releases-2024-reported-crimes-in-the-nation-statistics.

363–364     to restore “order” in Los Angeles . . . and Portland, Oregon Irie Sentner and Paul McLeary, “Trump, Justifying Domestic Military Action, Tells Pentagon Leaders to ‘Handle’ the ‘Enemy from Within,’” Politico, September 30, 2025, www.politico.com/news/2025/09/30/trump-military-cities-training-ground-00587977; Lazaro Gamio and Chris Hippensteel, “How and Where the National Guard Has Deployed to U.S. Cities,” New York Times, October 27, 2025, www.nytimes.com/interactive/2025/10/27/us/us-national-guard-deployments.html.

363–364     all Democrat-led cities, four led by Black mayors See “Karen Bass,” Ballotpedia, accessed October 30, 2025, ballotpedia.org/Karen_Bass (Los Angeles); Muriel Bowser,” Ballotpedia, accessed October 30, 2025, ballotpedia.org/Muriel_Bowser (Washington, D.C.); “Paul Young,” Ballotpedia, accessed October 30, 2025, ballotpedia.org/Paul_Young_(Tennessee) (Memphis); “Brandon Johnson,” Ballotpedia, accessed October 30, 2025, ballotpedia.org/Brandon_Johnson_(Illinois) (Chicago); and Keith Wilson, Ballotpedia, accessed October 30, 2025, ballotpedia.org/Keith_Wilson(Portland).

364     more than three-fourths . . . more “crime” in 2023 than in 2022 “More than three-quarters of Americans, 77%, believe there is more crime in the U.S. than a year ago, and a majority, 55%, say the same about crime in their local area.” Jeffrey M. Jones, “More Americans See U.S. Crime Problem as Serious,” Gallup News, November 16, 2023, news.gallup.com/poll/544442/americans-crime-problem-serious.aspx.

364      “My neighbors never post on NextDoor . . .” Jeff Asher, “Americans Are Bad at Perceiving Crime Trends,” Jeff-alytics, blog, December 4, 2023, jasher.substack.com/p/americans-are-bad-at-perceiving-crime.

364     “These outlier incidents become . . .”  Asher, “Americans Are Bad at Perceiving Crime Trends,” jasher.substack.com/p/americans-are-bad-at-perceiving-crime.

364     “worried about appearing out of touch . . .” Abdallah Fayyad, “Lawmakers Are Overreacting to Crime,” Vox, April 25, 2024, www.vox.com/policy/24139552/crime-rates-falling-tough-laws-mass-incarceration.