Charlottesville: Parallels Between The White Supremacists
and Antifa
By Rev. Mark Christopher
The
events of Charlottesville last Saturday have weighed heavy on my heart this
week as I reflect on what was, but never should have been. Last Saturday cast a
long dark shadow over the whole of the country, as it sent reverberations
around the world. As if the bellicose actions of the white supremacists, Antifa
(Antifascist), and Black Lives Matter weren’t bad enough, the ongoing
misinterpretations and manipulated narrative of the media is adding further
fuel to the fire. This is just as grievous and shameful as the tragic events of
Saturday past.
As
various “progressive” entities posture to modulate the storyline for the sake
of political advantage, one aspect of the story has been virtually eclipsed — the
parallels between the two primary warring factions: Antifa and the white
supremacists. There is as much that unites them as divides them. So, as I wade
into these contentious waters it is for the purpose of highlighting some of
these ironic similarities and then recounting the real solution for the racial
disharmony that prevails. Thus, the following is a partial list of the common
ground that these two opposing hate groups share:
1.
Both
groups loath the US Constitution and seek to undermine and flout it whenever it
suits their agenda driven purposes. Antifa demonstrated its utter contempt for
the 1st Amendment in Charlottesville by denying the white
supremacists their legal right to march on Saturday, even though the
supremacists had a properly attained permit. In turn, the white supremacists
would be quick to deny people of other races their equal rights as guaranteed
under the constitution.
2.
Both
evil scourges adhere to the utter mindlessness of identity politics. So, rather
than promoting the unity of Americanism — E
Plurbis Unum (out of many, one), both deranged groups seek to polarize and sow
discord through the error of their satanic doctrines of anarchy and racism.
3.
Both
groups claim membership in the ever-burgeoning club of victimhood. Antifa think
they are “victims” of capitalism, economic inequalities, and draconian
patriarchal structures. Meanwhile, the white supremacists claim that the current
social justice diatribe against “white privilege” has sidelined them because of
their pale pigment. They both sound like a whiny toddler in mom’s grocery cart
at the store, squalling like a brat because mom wouldn’t buy gummy bears. The
real victims here are those in the public who are subjected to their juvenile
rants and murderous intentions.
4.
Both
groups find their roots and identity in the soil of left-wing thinking and
ideology. The KKK and white supremacists locate their genesis in the Democratic
Party after the civil war. And even up through the civil rights era, many
prominent Democratic US congressmen and senators, like Robert Byrd, were, or
had been, members in good standing with the KKK. The Antifa movement on the
other hand, is lionized by many mainstream left-wing voices today because of
their emphasis on globalism and wealth redistribution. All of which explains
the left’s refusal to place any blame on Antifa and Black Lives Matter for
Saturday’s melee. This despite video footage that clearly shows Antifa charging
the marching supremacists from the sidelines. Of course, a strong police
presence would have done much to prevent the brawl that ensued.
5.
Based
on their common heritage and lineage, both are really two peas of the same
fascist pod. Even though Antifa stands for “Antifascists”, they hold to the
same essential dogma and strategies of the fascists of old. Their tactics
resemble the tactics of the Nazis prior to WW2 in their aggressive attempts to
silence all dissent, by any means necessary. As an anonymous sage from the WW2
era predicted, “The fascists of the future will be called antifascists.” Ironically,
the white supremacists have a similar Nazi-like modus oporendi. In fact, the confrontation in Charlottesville was
reminiscent of the street battles between the communists and the fascists of
Hitler, prior to Hitler’s ascension to power. Then, as now, both radical ideologies
were simply a variant of one another resembling an intra-tribal conflict.
6. Given
their shared lineage and the close similarities in dogma, it is not surprising
that both groups must rely on Big Government to intervene on behalf of their
respective platforms to ensure full compliance to their half-baked ideas. Whereas
true conservativism and right-wing thinking, ardently promotes a smaller,
decentralized form of government with limited powers that provide liberty and
justice for all.
7.
Both
miscreant groups are anti-Semitic and have little time for those of Jewish
persuasion. The white supremacists were chanting anti-Semitic epithets as they
marched in Charlottesville. Antifa claims to be the champion of Semitic
bigotry, yet they denigrate the Jewish state of Israel.
8. Both
groups share the same fatally flawed view of sin (hamartiology). They both see
sin as external and structural rather than inherent, individual, and personal.
The social justice mantra of Antifa construes the free market structures of the
west as prime evil. Conversely, the white supremacists view racial equality as
original sin, because it supplants white dominance. Neither group has any sense
of “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
9. Both
Antifa and the white supremacists have a similar external view of salvation
(soteriology). If sin is structural, then salvation includes replacing said
evil structures with more equitably perceived structures through revolution, to
include anarchy and para-military actions. Antifa illustrates this well with
their new website entitled “Redneck Revolution”, which espouses violent
revolutionary means to accomplish their diabolical ends of ridding the world of
white supremacists and free market values.
10. In
sum, both Antifa and the white supremacists look pathetically alike in their
goals, methods, ideology, theology, and genealogy. This is not to say there
aren’t any differences between them, or that they are identical in every way,
but the similarities are uncanny and unmistakable. They are like proverbial
birds of a feather. They are like long-lost twins that just haven’t found one
another yet. They are so blinded by
hatred and the violence that is bound up in their hearts, that they haven’t
figured out they are actually kissing cousins who are presently estranged. They
probably never will. Each is as bad as the other. For this reason, they deserve
each other more than most realize.
What is doubtlessly clear is that both of these subversive groups exacerbate the problem without having anything to offer in way of a solution. Of course, this applies to many others from the media to academics and politicians as well. There are any number of people who are ready to opportunistically use such a travesty for the furtherance of an agenda or ideology.
The haunting events of last Saturday indicate that there is a tremendous amount of hatred and bitterness about the past, surrounding Charlottesville, and concerning the way forward from here. And trying to lump one political party with all the blame will do little to quell the emotionally charged climate. We certainly can’t erase the past with its dark pastels, nor should we. Let us learn from the halls of history, but not live in those same halls, as some would have us do. Further, let us be weary of those, like the media and expedient politicians, who exploit this tragedy for their own evil purposes and the sake of personal gain.
The haunting events of last Saturday indicate that there is a tremendous amount of hatred and bitterness about the past, surrounding Charlottesville, and concerning the way forward from here. And trying to lump one political party with all the blame will do little to quell the emotionally charged climate. We certainly can’t erase the past with its dark pastels, nor should we. Let us learn from the halls of history, but not live in those same halls, as some would have us do. Further, let us be weary of those, like the media and expedient politicians, who exploit this tragedy for their own evil purposes and the sake of personal gain.
Instead, Bible-believing Christians should
capitalize on this present darkness and point the confused and bewildered to
the light of Christ. Make Christ the object of the rallying cry, not politics
or some secular notion of social justice. After all, this is a spiritual and theological problem before it is a political or social problem. The church of Jesus Christ has an
opportunity in this dark hour to be both light and salt — light that illumines
the way to the only one who broke down that wall of partition that stood
between us; and salt that arrests the creeping decay and rancor that
contentious issues like this emit. It is up to the church, the blood-bought
church, to remind those around us that God has made of all nations one blood,
and that salvation does not come by revolution, legislation, or coercive
polices, but by the blood of the Lamb! Therefore, if there is to be a
revolution, may it be a redemptive revolution that is led by the redeemed on
behalf of the Redeemer — Jesus Christ!
Note: As a postscript to this article, I came across a headline today that highlights the real meaning of the oft used term "alt-right". It is a term coined by Richard Spencer who leads a white nationalist socialist supremacist group. His use of the term means "alternative to the right", which underscores the arguments above that the white supremacists have far more in common with left-wing ideology and thinking than they do with those on the right. Spencer admits that he is a socialist, abortionist, and white supremacist. His goal is to hijack the Republican Party and morph it into his way of thinking. For this reason, he has been reviled and rejected by the right even though he insists on hitching his wagon to the right-wing train.
Note: As a postscript to this article, I came across a headline today that highlights the real meaning of the oft used term "alt-right". It is a term coined by Richard Spencer who leads a white nationalist socialist supremacist group. His use of the term means "alternative to the right", which underscores the arguments above that the white supremacists have far more in common with left-wing ideology and thinking than they do with those on the right. Spencer admits that he is a socialist, abortionist, and white supremacist. His goal is to hijack the Republican Party and morph it into his way of thinking. For this reason, he has been reviled and rejected by the right even though he insists on hitching his wagon to the right-wing train.