A Brief History of the Transatlantic Counterjihad, Part VI

This is the seventh of an eight-part history of the Transatlantic Counterjihad. Links to the first six parts are at the bottom of this post.

A debt of gratitude is owed to the Counterjihad Collective for its work on this project.


A Brief History of the Transatlantic Counterjihad
by the Counterjihad Collective

VI. Unofficial Opposition to the Counterjihad

In addition to official state opposition to the criticism of Islamization and sharia, there exists a wide range of ostensibly private organizations arrayed against those who resist Islamization. A brought coalition of Islamic groups and radical left-wing organizations, especially from the anarchist and anti-globalist Left, is frequently brought to bear against groups that publicly declare their differences with Islam.

In Europe the left-wing side of the coalition often includes rank-and-file members of the Socialists, the Social Democrats, the Communists, Labour, and other parties of the traditional socialist Left. Members of Labour parties have been observed marching arm-in-arm with Islamic groups while some of their fellow demonstrators could be heard in the background chanting “Hamas! Hamas! Jews to the gas!” The Labour Party in Norway — the same party whose younger members Anders Behring Breivik targeted for death on Utøya — strongly backs Hamas, and has suggested that the terrorist group should be supported with Norwegian taxpayers’ money.

Opposition to the Israeli “occupation” and strong support for Hamas and Hezbollah go hand-in-hand with widespread anti-Semitism on the European Left. Opponents of sharia and mass immigration are generally labeled “neo-Nazis” and “fascists”, but the uncomfortable truth is that anti-Semites are overwhelmingly found on the Socialist Left. Support for Israel is one of the common characteristics of the anti-Islamization parties in Europe. In Belgium, for example, the Islam-critical party Vlaams Belang is the only major party that staunchly defends Israel’s right to exist.

Efforts to silence the opponents of sharia and Islamization often turn violent. In Britain the group Unite Against Fascism deploys its members in carefully coordinated violence against the English Defence League during EDL demonstrations. On the Continent, a widespread movement known as Anti-Fascist Action (AFA, or Antifa) performs much the same function. When anti-sharia organizations stage rallies and demonstrations, the Antifas come from all over Western Europe to throw rocks, bottles, and fireworks at the demonstrators, and beat up those unfortunates who can be isolated from their respective groups.

The police — who are more than ready to arrest the anti-Islamization demonstrators on the slightest pretext — usually stand by and do nothing when the Antifas attack. Unless firearms are employed or lives are at risk, standing orders generally instruct the police not to intervene when the anti-fascists act violently against opponents of Islamization. In some countries, notably Sweden, Germany, and the Netherlands, the Antifas have at least the tacit support of the authorities, who presumably find them useful for disrupting the actions of anti-Islamization activists and demonstrators. In Sweden, members of the Sweden Democrats have had their houses vandalized, and have even been stabbed by “anti-fascist” thugs.

The current atmosphere in much of Western Europe resembles that of the 1930s, when various forms of fascism were on the rise in most European countries. The Antifas serve the same function as the brownshirts in Nazi Germany: they act as an organized mob tasked with quelling all forms of political dissent through targeted violence. Although their violent behavior has no official approval from the state, they may generally act with impunity.

Next: Part VII, Observations and General Conclusions


Previously:

2011		Nov		24		Part I, Introduction
				25		Part II, Conferences
				26		Part III(a), The Transatlantic Counterjihad at the OSCE
				27		Part III(b), The Transatlantic Counterjihad at the OSCE (cont.)
				28		Part IV, The Rosetta Stone Projects
				29		Part V, Official Opposition to the Transatlantic Counterjihad