In the wake of anti-fascist protests on the streets of major Brazilian cities on Sunday, young far-right São Paulo state lawmaker Douglas Garcia made a plea for his social media followers to send him names, photographs, and other information about “criminal” anti-fascist activists. The following day, congressman Daniel Silveira called on his peers to alter Brazil’s Anti-Terrorism Law and classify the Antifa movement as a terrorist organization.
While initially treated as an empty threat, Mr. Garcia soon compiled a 999-page list of around 1,000 supposed “anti-fascist activists,” including names, addresses, social security numbers, and other private data. One of the reporters responsible for this article had his name and personal information included on said list.
These far-right intimidation tactics, however, have been escalating for some time. In April, pro-Bolsonaro blogger Allan dos Santos — currently under investigation in a Supreme Court fake news inquiry, along with Douglas Garcia — told his followers to create apps to locate “those who celebrate communism” and “hunt them down.”
On June 2, photojournalist Gabriela Biló, from newspaper O Estado...
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