Mark Bray, Antifa: the Anti-Fascist Handbook. Brooklyn, NY: Melville House, 2017. ISBN: 9781612197036.
Genre: nonfiction
Subgenre: history, politics, activism
Format: trade paperback
Source: Hutchins Library, Berea College
This book is a pretty good primer that goes over the history of anti-fascism, Antifa, to today. The history starts around the 1920s with the rise of Hitler and Mussolini then the author takes us through to the 20th century and into the 21st century where fascists have learned to rebrand themselves in order to be more palatable to the mainstream. A clear lesson for antifa is that they must remain vigilant.
The book has six chapters, and three of them are the historical timeline. I found that to be an issue. The historical narrative, as important as it is, is fairly dry reading. Much of the narrative boils to this group did this, that group did that, repeat. Much of it is also Europe-centric. We do get U.S. coverage, but it is pretty late in the narrative. At this point, the author is packing a lot of history in three chapters, so the narrative may also feel rushed; the author does acknowledge this rushed feeling in the introduction.
For me, the most valuable part of the book was the second half. Chapter Four provides "Five Historical Lessons for Anti-Fascists." Chapter Five considers various issues fascists raise, such as "so much for the Tolerant Left!" and how to answer them. Chapter Five also provides a discussion of freedom of speech, and it is worth reading for that.
The book also features two appendices. Appendix A features "Advice from the Anti-Fascists of the Past and Present to Those of the Future." The author asked his sources and those he interviewed for experience based advice for the next generation. Topics include organizing strategies, intelligence, security, and tactics. Appendix B is a list of select works to help readers learn more. The list focuses on North America and Europe, and it offers print and online resources.
Overall, this is an interesting book at times, but the first part of the book is dry, slow, and a bit of a drag on what is a good book otherwise. For readers wanting to learn more or who have no idea what antifa is or means, this is a pretty solid introduction with some practical advice to take up the struggle in ways that work best for you.
Given how prominent the term is in the media, I do recommend the book for public as well as academic libraries. The book overall is pretty accessible and most of it is an easy read. Compared to other works on the topic, it does not get bogged down in theory or jargon. This book tells you the history, gives you the lessons and advice, arms you with knowledge and arguments to handle fascists and their enablers, and even gives you a bit of sources to learn more. I'd say that is a lot of value packed in this little book.
In the end, I liked it. And yes, I broke my moratorium on reading any books on politics, social issues, and activism to read this book, but it was well worth it.
3 out of 5 stars.
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Additional reading notes:
On how the book came together:
"Yet, I do not make any claims toward this being a comprehensive or definitive history of anti-fascism in general nor of the development of national movements in particular. To the degree that it is a history t all, it is an impressionistic history that aims to concisely trace broad themes and developments through weaving together vignettes from seventeen different countries over more than a century. This more modest goal was necessitated not only by the relative lack of sources and scholarly works, but by the tight deadline. This book was researched and written over a relatively short period in order to make its contributions available as soon as possible amid the tumultuous climate of the early Trump era. Therefore, this book is an example of history, politics, and theory on the run" (xxi-xxii).
What is at stake:
"When we speak about fascism, we must not drift too far away from thinking about the people who collected the hair, the gold teeth, the shoes of those they exterminated. When we speak about anti-fascism, we must not forget that, for many, survival was the physical embodiment of anti-fascism" (37).
How the Far Right rebrands to be more mainstream yet remains fascistic. By the way, we also see this in the current GOP Republican Party in the United States:
"Far-right parties wielded an ethnic and linguistic interpretation of citizenship to marginalize immigrants and even second- or third-generation minorities. They warned of heightened crime (especially sexual assault), strains on social services, competition for jobs, and fundamentally a loss of national, racial, cultural, and religious identity" (78-79).
This has been the GOP platform for decades. Trump simply embraced it and ran with it, appealing to the lowest fascistic racist instincts of many Americans. As Bray adds,
"The alt-right did not create Trump, but Trump clearly valued its political potential enough to echo many of its talking points, and to lavish praise on its stars. . . " (111).
A key lesson anti-fascists today need to heed:
"Fascist revolutions have never succeeded. Fascists gained power legally" (129).
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This book qualifies for the following 2021 Reading Challenges:
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