Lawmakers in Montana are in discussions regarding a bill that would classify the anarcho-communist group Antifa as a domestic terror organization.
Antifa networks and ideologically affiliated groups have conducted violent street protests and riots in a number of cities over the past several years, including in Minneapolis, Portland, Seattle, Olympia, and elsewhere.
Montana state Rep. Braxton Mitchell, a Republican representing Columbia Falls, told the Montana House Judiciary Committee during a Tuesday hearing that the bill is being considered.
Opponents of the measure said that such a bill should be opposed if it does not also classify other groups accused of violent acts, including groups that partook in the U.S. Capitol breach in January.
The Epoch Times has reached out to Mitchell’s office for comment.
Some officials, including FBI Director Chris Wray, have said that Antifa is more of an ideology rather than a group. He described Antifa as a decentralized movement.
Antifa is short for “anti-fascist,” but Ngo noted that “fascist” doesn’t necessarily refer to the Nazis or white supremacists, adding that the group often calls people fascists that are “in opposition to the far-left political agenda.” The United States itself, according to Ngo, is defined as “fascist” by most Antifa adherents, Ngo added.
And black bloc attacks in Portland appeared to be indiscriminate and didn’t target alleged white supremacists, Ngo added.
“They believe that they can actually organize society without a government,” he said, adding that adherents often believe that nobody should own private property.
Elaborating further, Ngo dispelled the idea that far-left groups would stop rioting and demonstrating after President Joe Biden took office.