Antifa Now a 'Major Terrorist Organization' — What Does That Actually Mean?
In the wake of Charlie Kirk's assassination, President Trump announced last night that the left-wing extremist group Antifa was being designated a 'major terrorist organization.' He also said that he would be strongly recommending the funding sources of Antifa be "thoroughly investigated in accordance with the highest legal standards and practices."
The move was lauded by conservatives across social media, but what does it actually entail? Well, as it turns out, it's pretty symbolic (at least this specific action).
According to Andy Ngo, who may be Public Enemy No. 1 as far as Antifa is concerned, we ought to tamper our expectations. He released the following video to his Substack, explaining that due to the First Amendment, the United States cannot effectively ban organizations outright. However, President Trump did allude to other actions that might have a tangible impact.
In 1970, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) was created to go after organized crime, particularly the Mafia. It allows prosecutors to charge people not only for individual crimes but for being part of a criminal enterprise as well.
In Trump's recent press conference, he mentioned RICO specifically, referring to US Attorney General Pam Bondi: "I've asked Pam to look into that in terms of RICO, bringing RICO cases." He continued, adding: "They should be put in jail, what they're doing to this country is really subversive."
In Ngo's video, he referenced a case in California in 2023. There is also some precedent with a case in Georgia in 2023, when the state's attorney general, Chris Carr, filed sweeping state RICO charges against 61 protestors connected to the "Cop City" protests. The indictment accused them of conspiring to commit acts of violence, intimidation, and property destruction. However, this effort was largely unsuccessful.
While the case in Georgia mentioned Antifa specifically, it was not targeting Antifa as a singular criminal enterprise, as this is more difficult with decentralized, loosely defined movements. In some sense, it would be easier were Antifa to have the organizational structure of say, the Mafia.
That being said, it is clear the Justice Department is now looking into Antifa with greater urgency, and there is a good chance something will come out of this. They just might need to be creative in how they go about it.
And what is Antifa, exactly? Jack Posobiec, who was a close friend of Charlie Kirk's and is the Senior Editor of Human Events, explained that what we now call Antifa was born in Bolshevik Moscow. He went on to say that Antifa was used to spread communism across Europe, originating in the 1930's (at the height of fascism).
In another tweet, Posobiec noted that the East German (DDR) government's name for the Berlin Wall was, in fact, 'The Antifa Protection Rampart.' In reality, the Wall was used not to keep anyone out, but to keep East Germans in.
Because Antifa is not a formal, hierarchical organization in the sense that others are, it can be difficult to attribute precise numbers on violence committed by their adherents. However, it is clear that they have been responsible for numerous instances of assault, property damage, intimidation, and protest clashes.
In 2023, journalist Andy Ngo was awarded $300,000 following a 2019 assault by three Antifa activists in Portland, Oregon. Again, he is probably the best source to follow for information relating to Antifa and has even published a book titled Unmasked: Inside Antifa's Radical Plan to Destroy Democracy (2021).
While it's not clear entirely how effective the federal government will be in thwarting Antifa's entire network of violent left-wing extremists, it is probably safe to say they will be effective in prosecuting some of them. For the sake of America, our democracy, and for all conservatives who have been threatened or harassed by Antifa over the years, hopefully they will find a way to debilitate and demoralize them for good.
Michael J. Hout is Editor-in-Chief of Liberty Affair. Based in Warsaw, Poland, he writes about politics, culture, and history. Follow his latest insights on X: @michaeljhout.
