The following "Letter to the Editor" was submitted to us by Todd Zimmerman, Secretary of the Schuylkill County Democratic Committee.
The Myth of Antifa
There is no Antifa organization. Antifa means anti-fascist. When Japan attacked Pearl Harbor, Democrats and Republicans, including FDR and Dwight Eisenhower respectively, united to fight the fascist leaders in Tokyo, Berlin, and Rome. Thousands of people in Schuylkill County, including my father, volunteered to serve in World War II. Following the victory, communism expanded into Eastern Europe and later China. Once again Democrats and Republicans formed a consensus to “contain” the Soviet Union and its satellites.
Our country stands for freedom and democracy embodied in our Constitution. We abhor dictatorships on both the left and right. In fact, Article 1 of the Constitution gives the most powers to the Legislature. Our founders feared a single strong leader, and gave little direct responsibilities to the President in Article 2.
Our freedom of speech and assembly is guaranteed in the First Amendment. The majority of protesters that participated in BLM marches last year were peaceful. However, insurrectionists and arsonists infiltrated the peaceful groups in the evening and attacked businesses and public buildings. Those people should be arrested. Thousands of people also gathered in Washington on January 6th. The majority were peaceful. However, white supremacists also infiltrated that march and stormed the Capitol. They wore military outfits, carried plastic handcuffs easily accessible from Amazon, batons, tasers, bear spray. Clearly those people did not intend to be part of a peaceful protest, and it was all caught on camera.
However, everyone is missing the main point. This was all based on a lie espoused by Donald Trump and his private lawyer Rudi Giuliani that the election was rigged. Republican Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell summed it up after his acquittal vote, “They [the insurrectionists] had been fed wild falsehoods by the most powerful man on Earth because he was angry he’d lost an election. . . There is no question, none, that President Trump is practically and morally responsible for provoking the events of the day.” McConnell also sent a hidden message to his fellow Republicans Dan Meuser and Dave Argall, “sadly, many politicians sometimes make overheated comments or use metaphors that unhinged listeners may take literally.”
The election was over 100 days ago. Argall still has not told his constituents the truth. The Republican legislature passed Act 77 allowing for mail in ballots. He voted for that measure. In fact, he received over 11,000 mail in votes in Schuylkill County. Donald Trump gained votes in Philadelphia compared to 2016. The Republican Commissioner in Philly told 60 Minutes that fraud did not occur. Republican judges overturned Giuliani’s 60 plus lawsuits because there was no evidence. Our country will not heal until this lie is buried. Once again Democrats and Republicans need to unite to protect our democracy against enemies both foreign and domestic.
Todd Zimmerman
Secretary of the Schuylkill County Democratic Committee
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