Prominent law professor Jonathan Turley warned Congress on Tuesday that the Antifa movement is a threat to free speech and it’s “winning” in its crusade to silence opponents.
Mr. Turley, who teaches at George Washington University, said the kinds of battles now playing out on city streets are nothing new to colleges.
“Many of us on campuses have been dealing with Antifa for years, and Antifa is winning,” he warned the Senate Judiciary Committee. “I’ve been teaching for 30 years; I have never seen the level of fear and intimidation on campuses that we see today.”
He said violence on the right and left must be condemned, and said Antifa is part of that.
“For people that think Antifa and groups like it can be allies, they don’t know antifa. Those of us that have been teaching on campuses can tell you about these groups,” he said. “I’m watching my profession, the teaching profession, die with free speech.”
Antifa, or “anti-fascist,” activists have gained prominence during the current racial justice protests that erupted in the wake of the death of George Floyd, a black man, at the hands of a white Minneapolis police officer.
How organized Antifa activists are is hotly debated.
Republicans said they’re part of the violent elements that have attacked federal authorities in Portland, Oregon.
Democrats counter that it’s federal officers that are inciting the violence by their presence.
• Stephen Dinan can be reached at sdinan@washingtontimes.com.
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