President Trump on September 22, signed an executive order formally labelling Antifa—commonly understood as a loosely connected, far-left, anti-fascist movement—as a “domestic terrorist organization.” The move directs all relevant federal departments and agencies to “investigate, disrupt and dismantle any and all illegal operations, especially those involving terrorist actions conducted by Antifa or any person claiming to act on behalf of Antifa, or for which Antifa … provided material support.”
In the executive order, the White House describes Antifa as a “militarist, anarchist enterprise that explicitly calls for the overthrow of the United States Government, law enforcement authorities, and our system of law” and accuses it of routinely using illegal means such as riots, armed standoffs with law enforcement, doxxing political figures, suppressing political speech, and obstructing federal law enforcement duties. The order claims it recruits, trains, and radicalizes young Americans, and employs mechanisms to hide identities, funding sources, and operations to obstruct law enforcement.
Trump’s administration ties the order in part to recent events, specifically the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on September 10, 2025, which he and his allies have partially attributed to what they frame as rising radical left-wing violence. However, authorities have not presented public evidence linking Antifa or its operatives to Kirk’s death.
Legal experts and civil liberties groups have expressed serious concerns about the order’s constitutionality and its practical enforceability. One major issue is that U.S. law provides no precedent or clear statutory authority for designating a wholly domestic, decentralized movement as a terrorist group in the same way foreign organizations are designated. Critics argue that because Antifa lacks a central leadership, formal structure, membership rolls, or unified command, there’s no clear mechanism for applying many of the order’s directives. Others warn the move could chill free speech or be used to target political dissent under a broad or vague definition of “acting on behalf of Antifa.”
The White House, however, maintains that the designation is both warranted and necessary to address what it describes as escalating political violence from the radical left. Federal agencies are now instructed to use “all applicable authorities” to carry out investigations, prosecutions, and disruptions of alleged illegal operations linked to Antifa.
