Antifa

This morning someone decided they would prefer to be a TERF than participate in my professional association.

This whole conversation has been clarifying for me. They objected to me referring to someone as a “cis heterosexual” in the fortnightly newsletter, claiming it was “potentially offensive”. I said we’re queer- and trans-friendly and always will be. They said they would “unsubscribe” — from the newsletter I suppose. I was initially surprised by the whole thing: wasn’t everyone in our network queer-friendly or, at the very least, “accepting of the things they cannot change”? Didn’t everyone know our values? Apparently not.

Thinking about it this morning I realised however that I’m more disturbed by my own reaction to this. I wanted to simply ignore the email, and had to be prompted to send a polite but firm response. If I’d done that, our position would be ambiguous: maybe we were considering “both sides” of whether trans people should be treated as whole, dignified humans. It occurred to me that this is precisely the situation that people are trained for in preventing violence against women. I almost never find myself in the company of men who make jokes or comments derogatory of women, so I haven’t had the opportunity to act on this training. But I am almost constantly in the physical or virtual presence of Nice Straight White Ladies and their male equivalents. Let’s face it, unless I choose otherwise, I am one and accepted as such.

I almost chose not to choose otherwise. And this is the essence of the whole “first they came for…” parable. There are times to step back and make space for others. And there are times to close off space and make it clear that “we don’t do that here”. I almost chose not to make it clear, and that bothers me, especially since it’s obvious I was kind of baiting any TERFs who may be reading.

All the talk of punching nazis and Black Blocs is nice and all, but I’m not physically built for that. What I have perhaps finally absorbed — after repeatedly reading and hearing it — is that antifa is an everyday activity, and most effective as such. Everyday fascism is expressed in democratic and liberal terms: “not everyone agrees that”, “you should be aware of your audience”, “it is potentially offensive”.

Everyday Antifa requires clarity and confidence, not fists. It’s maintenance as much or more than it’s revolution: We don’t do that here. Those comments aren’t acceptable to us. Your opinion has been noted but we don’t thank you for it. Your opinion is morally wrong. That behaviour won’t be tolerated.

But we have to say it.