Trump signs executive order banning nebulous ‘Antifa’ members travelling to US

In September 2020, the FBI director had said Antifa is an ideology and not a terrorist organisation

File image: Members of Antifa and Proud Boys clash in Washington, DC in November (Getty Images)

Donald Trump has signed an executive order that asks secretary of state Mike Pompeo to “assess actions of Antifa activists,” stop its members from entering the United States, and see whether it can be classified as a terrorist organisation. 

Antifa is an anti-fascist movement of far-left leaning militant groups who are also known for confronting white supremacists and using aggressive measures to intimidate those they deem authoritarian or racist.

The memorandum signed by the US president would ensure that “federal officials assess actions of Antifa activists in light of federal laws that restrict the entry of aliens associated with terrorist organisations and aliens intent on criminal activity,” said the White House press secretary in a statement.

The press secretary said that “Antifa activists have brutally attacked our law-abiding friends, neighbours, and business owners, and destroyed historic landmarks that our communities have cherished for decades.”  

“This violence and lawlessness has no place in the United States and will be called out for the domestic terrorism that it is,” the statement said.

However, in September 2020, the FBI director Chris Wray had told Congress that Antifa is an ideology, not an organisation, while Mr Trump and his supporters have been arguing for designating it as a terror group.  

The memorandum noted that the justice department has already publicly confirmed “that actions by Antifa and similar groups meet the standard for domestic terrorism” and highlighted a series of instances of Antifa protesters involved in violence over the past few years.

“Reliable reporting suggests that the movement known as Antifa is directly or indirectly responsible for some of the recent lawlessness in our communities, and has exploited tragedies to advance a radical, leftist, anarchist, and often violent agenda,” said the order.

It also stated that those affiliated with Antifa have repeatedly threatened violence, including against law enforcement officers and said the movement has “long used otherwise permissible demonstrations to engage in lawless, criminal behaviour to further its radical agenda.”

The memorandum noted that the secretary of state “shall, in consultation with the attorney general and the secretary of homeland security, review information received from the department of justice and other authorities to assess whether to classify Antifa as a terrorist organisation.”