MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota Rep. Keith Ellison boldly signaled his support for the violent, far-left “Antifa” movement on social media Wednesday.
In a post on Twitter, Ellison posed for a picture with the radical book “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook.” Smiling as he held the book up, Ellison said the book would “strike fear in the heart of @realDonaldTrump.”
At @MoonPalaceBooks and I just found the book that strike fear in the heart of @realDonaldTrump pic.twitter.com/r81nYoeqpL
— Rep. Keith Ellison (@keithellison) January 3, 2018
Antifa is a far-left group that has been responsible for violent protests across the country, most prominently the riot that exploded at UC Berkeley over a planned event featuring conservative speaker Milo Yiannopoulos. The UC Berkeley riot seemed to set the tone for Antifa protests going forward, leading to violence at rallies all over the country including one at the State Capitol in July 2017 where one of Alpha News’ own reporters was attacked.
Mark Bray, the author of the Antifa handbook, is a Dartmouth professor and former Occupy Wall Street organizer. Bray has described his book as “an unabashedly partisan call to arms that aims to equip a new generation of anti-fascists with the history and theory necessary to defeat the resurgent far right.” The book not only details the history of the anti-fascist movement, but also goes into tactics of Antifa rioters.
Bray has not shied away from the violent side of Antifa. In an interview with Melville House following the release of his book, Bray praised the violent tactics of Antifa, admitting the group will “pressure venues to cancel their events, organize self-defense trainings, and physically confront the far right when necessary.” Bray also admitted that property destruction is a “part of the anti-fascist and more broadly revolutionary repertoire.”
Ellison’s overt endorsement of Bray’s controversial book drew many negative reactions from Twitter users, including some urging the representative to take the picture down.
At time of publishing, Ellison has not issued any retraction, nor has any of his Democratic allies have distanced themselves from his post.
