National riots fueled by "Domestic extremists" and "professional agitators"

As riots across the nation continue to break out in response to the heinous and unjustified police arrest and subsequent death of George Floyd in Minneapolis, Minnesota last week, many members of the U.S. Congress have fallen short of calling for an end to the violence and destruction of property.

While Rep. Frederica Wilson (D) tweeted for the arrest of all of the officers that stood and watched while Floyd was killed is a sentiment that could be supported by most Americans, the veteran congresswoman, who has been at the center of past, high-profile and race-oriented protests, has yet to denounce the riots and violence attributed to them.

Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell (D), who sits on the House Judiciary Committee and pushed to impeach President Donald Trump earlier this year, also expressed her frustration over the belief that there is a systemic policing problem across the country that targets Black Americans.

“The pain felt across our country is real and raw,” stated Rep. Mucarsel-Powell in a press release. “It is a call for listening, empathy, and understanding. But we must heed this call together, hand-in-hand, in order to move forward, to find justice, and to heal the awful wounds that injustice has once again opened.

 Rep. Mucarsel-Powell hasn’t directly called for an end to the violence but did hint at it by quoting Rep. John Lewis’ recent remarks directed at rioters in Atlanta, Georgia.

“As people of all races and creeds unite in the name of justice, I reflect on the recent words of civil rights leader and my colleague, Rep. John Lewis: ‘To the rioters here in Atlanta and across the country: I see you, and I hear you. I know your pain, your rage, your sense of despair and hopelessness. Justice has, indeed, been denied for far too long. Rioting, looting, and burning is not the way. Organize. Demonstrate. Sit-in. Stand-up. Vote. Be constructive, not destructive. History has proven time and again that non-violent, peaceful protest is the way to achieve the justice and equality that we all deserve.’

But are these riots organic in nature, or are they being perpetrated by organized riot groups like ANTIFA or other Socialists groups known for inciting public unrest?

Florida Senator Marco Rubio (R) believes that the riots involved several groups of people, including “Domestic extremists” or ANTIFA-like groups who have co-opted the protests to “advance their own agenda.”

According to images taken at the Miami riots by The Miami Herald’s Al Diaz, the overwhelming majority of rioters were not Black but were actually younger Hispanics, some of which literally wore their ideology on their sleeves or chests. Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Gimenez also echoed what Sen. Rubio suggested in that “outside professional agitators” were the ones stirring the pot that has led to small businesses being vandalized, looted, and 57 individuals being arrested.

Here is an image of one individual wearing a shirt with the image of a sword, hammer an sickle with Russian text is one of the original designs considered during This specific symbol almost became the official emblem of the Soviet Union when it was entered in a competition put on by Vladimir Lenin in 1917. Anarchists have widely used the Soviet-era hammer and sickle to promote their cause.