President Donald Trump signed an executive order on Sept. 22 designating Antifa a "domestic terrorist organization." The order calls Antifa a "militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government." Asserting a pattern of political violence, the order instructs executive agencies to "investigate, disrupt, and dismantle any and all illegal operations" of Antifa and related persons. A fact sheet from the Trump administration describes examples of political violence which it attributes to Antifa, including assaults against Immigration & Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents.

Antifa, which stands for anti-fascist, has long been a preoccupation of President Trump, who called for this designation at the end of his first term as well.

The Congressional Research Service (CRS) describes Antifa as a decentralized movement that gained prominence in 2017 after confronting white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia. The CRS notes that Antifa has no organizational structure, nor a common enemy list, but is composed of "loosely affiliated individuals." Nor is there a common ideology other than anti-fascism, although some adherents are anarchists, socialists and communists. The CRS states: "Some media and law enforcement reports suggest that antifa members may be responsible for some of the violence and looting that has taken place amid the protests that have occurred recently in various US cities." But it adds that "antifa members have been involved in peaceful protests as well."

The legal implications of the order are unclear, as there is no statute providing for a domestic terrorist designation, as there is for "foreign terrorist organizations" under section 219 of the Immigration & Nationality Act as amended by Antiterrorism & Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996. Domestic terrorism is defined in the US criminal code as violations of criminal law "dangerous to human life" that appear to be intended to intimidate civilians or influence government policy or officials through violence.

This executive order comes in the wake of the killing of prominent conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

From JURIST, Sept. 23. Used with permission.

See also our podcast, "Charlie Kirk = Calvo Sotelo?"

See our reports on the Charlottesville violence of August 2017.