The discourse is Too Much

To begin this post, I want to acknowledge how thrilled I am to be in such a brilliant cohort. It is super refreshing, and I have been thoroughly enjoying reading all of your posts. Sometimes the internet feels like an absolute hellscape (am I allowed to say that here?), but this forum is genuinely comforting. I believe that the prompt for this month is crucial. I honestly find myself oscillating between bouts of being ebullient about this semester’s prospects and feeling inundated with readings, work, and balancing my mental health. These moods (vibes, if you will) exist in tandem, but the rate of vicissitude gives me motion sickness. Literally, everything feels ephemeral – so I try my best to compartmentalize the heinous reality of 2020 and focus on the good stuff, the small things. When I started drafting this—I didn’t intend to pop off cynically—but I am grateful to have a platform to share these things. So, thank you.
Moving forward, I want to utilize this opportunity to lay the foundation for the project I will be parsing through CPL. I intend to observe the impetus behind the intention to declare ANTIFA a terrorist organization. This issue is intrinsically nuanced; thus, Kaysi agreed that it might be beneficial to begin probing it. For those who are unaware (jealous of y’all, to be honest), Trump, as well as a majority of conservatives, have been crying wolf about the deleterious organization of leftists who identify as Anti-Fascist. Many of these nationalists postulate that ANTIFA is responsible for violent outbreaks. Although lacking evidence, these esoteric remarks are taken as pragmatic, igniting a more profound sense of fear for conservatives.
It might seem convoluted, but to begin this inquiry, I pivot to right-wing militias who are being supported by governments across the country. One of my favorite journalists, Melissa Gira Grant, reported on this recently. My thoughts are indebted to her. A few weeks ago, Grant published “The Era of Disaster Militarism in America,” through which she addressed the pernicious accusations that ANTIFA is responsible for the outbreak of fires. Side note: in a different, less horrifying, reality this would almost be comical, seeing as the fires began from a gender reveal endeavor. Grant swiftly establishes how this (mis)information disseminated across discourses. Citizens have started taking justice into their own hands, in a sort of neo-authority, with individuals transmogrifying themselves to combat ANTIFA. What disturbs me is the absolute absence of a mea culpa. The government has elucidated that they support these augmented groups to contend ANTIFA. As these tensions proliferate, I hope to unpack the civil war that is transcending in real-time.

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