CNN host W. Kamau Bell downplayed violence from antifa, saying “people get hurt” by the group but argued their cause was justified.
“Look, this fighting for democracy and against fascism thing has always been a messy business. And, yes, people get hurt, property gets damaged, and things get confusing,” Bell said during the segment of United Shades of America, adding that Martin Luther King Jr. died violently.
Bell took aim at white Americans during the segment, saying they only point to antifa as a “boogeyman” because they have trouble confronting their “complicated feelings” about police violence.
“In 2020, many white Americans dealt with complicated feelings about the police for the first time,” Bell said. “The right-wing saw that, and they did what they do: They pulled a bait-and-switch, and returned to an old boogeyman: antifa.”
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Bell argued that right-leaning media outlets played into white Americans’ fears and uncertainty.
“Images of people clad in black fighting in the streets was an easy idea to sell to people who say things like, ‘Blue Lives Matter,” Bell said. “Ain’t nobody blue.”
The host then went on to defend antifa, noting that the name of the group is short for “anti-fascist” while comparing those who oppose the group to supporting “Hitler and Mussolini.”
“‘Antifa’ is short for anti-fascist,” Bell said. “If you’re unsure how you feel about that, picture a table: On one side of the table is Hitler and Mussolini, and on the other side is the popular [children’s] performer Raffi.”
“Which side of the table you sitting on?” Bell asked. “I’m with Raffi.”
Bell then spoke with two members of Portland’s antifa movement, seemingly referring to President Joe Biden when saying that “a lot of people on the Left have done a lot of work to say, ‘Antifa is not a group; it’s an ideology’ — and then, you guys actually are a group.”
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The host described the two disguised antifa members as charming and sensitive but admitted the group does have a history of violence.
Bell’s guests admitted to engaging in violent acts, adding that they also dox people for saying “violent, racist, disgusting things” while “hoping they get fired, or have to find a new job.”
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