Radical left political movements, in particular the street actions of Antifa and the ‘black bloc’, frequently attract public and political commentary, often based on media reporting around violent clashes with far-right groups in the United States. The public depiction of the radical (anti-fascist) left tends to be negative and without analytical nuance, usually centred on a one-dimensional focus on violence. This is partially because empirical evidence on contemporary radical left movements is still underdeveloped, especially in Australia.

This webinar presents an overview of several current research studies on the far-left with a focus on their antifascist actions in Australia. Based on ethnographic fieldwork and social media analysis, it discusses this topic from three interconnected thematic angles: first, the radical left groups’ offline responses to the rise of the far-right in the second half of 2010s (especially in Victoria); second, the online mobilisation of Australian-based Antifa groups; and third, the offline messaging of far-left groups through public postering and graffiti, especially in Sydney.      

Panellists

Mario Peucker is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for Sustainable Industries and Liveable Cities (ISILC) at Victoria University in Melbourne (Australia) and a senior fellow at the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right (CARR). He has undertaken research and published on ethno-religious community activism, citizenship and political radicalism since 2003, both in Australia and Europe.

Julian Droogan is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology (SSC) at Macquarie University in Sydney (Australia). He has undertaken research on Islamist extremist narratives, far-right extremism in Australia, and the confluence of social media and violent extremism. He is also Editor of The Journal of Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism (Routledge).

Sarah Holmes is a PhD student in the Department of Security Studies and Criminology at Macquarie University (Australia). She has undertaken research into the evolution of Australia’s counter terrorism governance, and for her current PhD she has conducted an online social media analysis to examine the mobilisation narratives used by Antifa in Australia, the UK and the USA.