Millions of Americans feel pressure currently to pick
a side to suppport or denounce a faction knowing
that whatever they say about white supremacists, Antifa,
or Black Lives matter, they risk being criticized for
failing to condemn violence on "their side" or for
suggesting a false equivalence between the groups.

So how can an observer find clarity?

One way to distinguish is between a group's end and its
means.

ISIS is an example. Their stated end is the creation of a
repressive theocracy. There's no reason to doubt that
claim. And the means that they've chosen, terrorism, rape,
plunder and pillaging is abhorrent regardless of whether or
not it proves to be practically effective all should condemn
the means and their end.

cont'd ...

Antifa (short for anti-fascist) is the name loosely
affiliated with anti-racist groups that monitor and
track the activities of local neo-Nazis. The movement
has no unified structure or national leadership and has
merged in the form of local bodies nationwide particularly
on the West Coast of the US.

The primary goal is to stop neo-Nazis and white supremacists
from gaining a platform rather than to promote a specific
agenda. Their aim is to deny fascists a public forum.
Which is why they turn out in numbers to physically confront
neo-Nazis, the KKK, and white supremacists at public
demonstrations.

They don't eschew violence but rather see themselves as
engaging in "self-defense" protecting other protesters and
confronting neo-Nazis.

The Black Lives Matter movement arose as a primary end to
stop unjust killing by policer officers - but some of its
members have broader agendas like economic redistribution.
However reforming policy is the movement's primary goal and
it is one that is universally shared.

Analysis of the BLM protests found that 93% were peaceful and
some of the violent incidents at the rallies were simply
opportunistic vandalism.

Most of the protest leaders have tried to stop looting and
other violence recognizing this is counter - productive and
wrong.

Moreover BLM is an open movement with a host of organizations
particularly along with self-proclaimed supporters rather
than a tight group with a defined membership. Therefore
labelling the movement as violent is false.

cont'd ...

One noticeable thing is that at the Trump rallies
the supporters exhibit a defaced American flag.
Where the colours have been changed but the design
pattern maintained. In most countries that would be
considered a punishable offence. Instead of the
regular stars and stripes the flag is white stars
on a dark blue background, white and dark blue stripes
and a black stripe through the middle.

Surely normal Americans would take offence?

I have just done some research and learned that
there is a " Thin Blue Line Flag". According to the
Oxford Dictionary the term "Thin Blue Line" is
"used to refer to the police, especially in the
context of maintaining order during unrest".

According to The Marshall Project, it was after 2014
that a flag representing the Thin Blue Line idea
appeared, a black and white version of the American
National flag, with a blue-stripe running horizontally
under the stars.

As racial discord simmers across the United States,
several parts of the country continue to witness clashes
between anti-racism activists and supporters of President
Donald Trump.

At these confrontations, a symbol that has increasingly been
put on display by right-wing groups is the "Thin Blue Line"
flag. A continuous rendition of the Star-Spangled Banner
which has sparked intense debate over the years.

The flag stirred controversy after it was co-opted by
right-wing groups, especially by the Blue Lives Matter
movement, which sprung up in 2014 as a counter-face to the
anti-racism BLM movement.

In 2017, the Thin Blue Line flag was flown during the
Charlottesville incident, then reported as the largest
gathering of white nationalists in over a decade, which
ended with a woman being killed
and at least 20 being injured after a car
drove into a crowd of protesters.

Fringe elements at the rally were seen carrying the banner
along with Confederate flags and Nazi symbols.
This flag's adoption by fringe groups, however,
did not sit well with
all Thin Blue Line supporters. Thin Blue Line USA, among the
country's largest retailers of pro police merchandise,
condemned strongly the flag's display at the Charlottesville
rally and issued a statement saying:

"We reject in the strongest possible terms, any association of
our flag with racism, hatred, and bigotry. To use it in such
a way tarnishes what it and our nation believes in".

Hear, Hear!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antifa_(United_States)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Antifa_sticker_on_No_Parking_sign.jpg

"Both the name antifa and the logo with two flags representing anarchism and communism are derived from the German Antifa movement."

"A majority of adherents are anarchists, communists and other socialists who describe themselves as revolutionaries"

"Bray states that "[t]he vast majority of antifa militants are radical anti-capitalists who oppose the Democratic Party" and that Democratic Party leaders, including Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden, have condemned antifa and political violence more broadly.[63] Despite antifa's opposition to the Democratic Party and liberalism, some right-wing commentators have accused their adherents of being aided by "liberal sympathizers" "

"The Anti-Defamation League states that "[m]ost antifa come from the anarchist movement or from the far left, though since the 2016 presidential election, some people with more mainstream political backgrounds have also joined their ranks".[14] Similarly, Mark Bray argues that "[i]t's also important to remember that these are self-described revolutionaries. They're anarchists and communists who are way outside the traditional conservative-liberal spectrum".[51] ABC News notes that "[w]hile antifa's political leanings are often described as 'far-left,' experts say members' radical views vary and can intersect with communism, socialism and anarchism"."

"The movement is loosely affiliated[8] and has no chain of command, with antifa groups instead sharing "resources and information about far-right activity across regional and national borders through loosely knit networks and informal relationships of trust and solidarity".[41] According to Mark Bray, "members hide their political activities from law enforcement and the far right" and "concerns about infiltration and high expectations of commitment keep the sizes of groups rather small".[41]"

"The antifa movement has grown since the 2016 United States presidential election. As of August 2017, approximately 200 groups existed, of varying sizes and levels of activity.[71] It is particularly present in the Pacific Northwest.[72]"

"According to Brian Levin, director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at the California State University, San Bernardino, antifa activists feel the need to participate in violent actions because "they believe that elites are controlling the government and the media. So they need to make a statement head-on against the people who they regard as racist"."

"Scott Crow told an interviewer:

The idea in Antifa is that we go where they (right-wingers) go. That hate speech is not free speech. That if you are endangering people with what you say and the actions that are behind them, then you do not have the right to do that. And so we go to cause conflict, to shut them down where they are, because we don't believe that Nazis or fascists of any stripe should have a mouthpiece.[17]"

"Antifa activists often use the black bloc tactic in which people dress in black and cover their faces in order to thwart surveillance and create a sense of equality and solidarity among participants."

"...antifa became prominent in the news during the George Floyd protests"

"In August 2020, many small business owners interviewed by The New York Times in what was the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone in Seattle blamed people they identified as antifa for much of the violence and intimidation of their patrons while distinguishing antifa from Black Lives Matter."

"In July 2020, FBI Director Christopher A. Wray, who stated in a press release[128] on June 4, 2020 that "anarchists like Antifa" are "exploiting this situation to pursue violent, extremist agendas""