The Nation, “Why Berkeley’s Battle Against White Supremacy Is Not About Free Speech”
On August 27, several thousand Bay Area students, teachers, and community members attended the “Rally Against Hate,” which was organized by an unprecedented coalition of over 100 campus, labor, interfaith, community justice, and socialist/anarchist groups. Despite the mostly peaceful character of the demonstration, the media focused overwhelmingly on a few instances of violent skirmishes, painting […]
SF Gate, “UC President Janet Napolitano wades into campus free speech debate”
Her remarks at the American Political Science Association’s conference in San Francisco came ahead of a conservative UC Berkeley student group’s “Free Speech Week” next month, which Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin asked the campus Monday to cancel in the wake of anarchist violence. Continue Reading
SFist, “Alt-Right Activist Behind Cancelled Berkeley Rally Gives Insane Press Conference, In Antioch”
In the days since some violence broke out on Sunday between a group of black-clad leftist activists and a small number of right-wing and/or libertarian activists who showed up in downtown Berkeley — despite Cummings having tried to call off the rally she’d initially organized — multiple politicians have given statements condemning the actions of […]
Berkeleyside, “On heels of rally, Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguín condemns ‘violent extremism’”
The antifa demonstrators belong to a far-left, largely anarchist, contingent that believes fascism is burgeoning and that preventing it often requires force. When a few protesters on the right showed up at Civic Center Park, antifa activists and some others chased them out and sometimes beat them. Their actions have been derided by many along […]
SF Gate, “Pelosi calls for the prosecution of ‘violent’ antifa members”
The San Francisco Democrat was quick to separate antifa from the Democratic Party, telling the Denver’ Post’s editorial board on Wednesday: “You’re not talking about the far left of the Democratic Party — they’re not even Democrats. A lot of them are socialist or anarchist or whatever.” Continue Reading
The Washington Post, “Black-clad antifa members attack peaceful right-wing demonstrators in Berkeley”
Their faces hidden behind black bandannas and hoodies, about 100 anarchists and antifa— “anti-fascist” — members barreled into a protest Sunday afternoon in Berkeley’s Martin Luther King Jr. Civic Center Park. Continue Reading
CBS News, “Black-clad anarchists storm large Berkeley anti-hate rally”
An anti-hate rally was disrupted when scores of anarchists wearing black clothing and masks stormed the demonstration in Berkeley and attacked several supporters of President Trump. But police were able to head off any wider violence. Continue Reading
Fox 2 Bay Area, “Anarchists create menacing mood in Berkeley; 13 arrested, six injured”
He was pepper-sprayed and chased; police protected Gibson with their bodies after a purple smoke bomb was thrown, presumably by the anarchists. Video shot by a Mother Jones reporter showed a beat-down by people in black of a Donald Trump supporter. A KTVU reporter had her camera shoved out of her hand by people dressed […]
ABC 7 Bay Area, “VIDEO: Liberal shields young Trump fan during Berkeley protest”
The calm before the melee gave Noyes a chance to speak with an Antifa member, a college student, and anarchist who said, “I look like I’m ready to fight,” though he told us he’s not there for violence. He couldn’t however, say the same for his friends. Continue Reading
SF Gate, “Masked anarchists violently rout right-wing demonstrators in Berkeley”
An army of anarchists in black clothing and masks routed a small group of right-wing demonstrators who had gathered in a Berkeley park Sunday to rail against the city’s famed progressive politics, driving them out — sometimes violently — while overwhelming a huge contingent of police officers. Continue Reading