An expert on anti-fascist groups who teaches at Rutgers University says he is fleeing with his family to Spain after getting death threats amid a campaign by the campus chapter of Turning Point USA and other conservative groups to get him fired.
Mark Bray, an assistant professor of history, said Thursday that he decided to make the move out of concern for his family’s safety after being falsely labeled as a member of antifa, a term used to describe far-left activist groups that oppose fascism.
“I do not have any affiliation with any antifa group and don’t plan to,” said Bray, who wrote the book “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook,” which documents the philosophy and tactics of militant anti-fascist movements in the U.S. and around the world. He has taught courses on anti-fascism and terrorism at the university since 2019.
Bray spoke to The Associated Press from a hotel near Newark Airport, where he was awaiting a flight out of the U.S. He said he will teach his classes remotely.
Right-wing influencers and others began criticizing Bray on social media after President Donald Trump signed an executive order late last month designating antifa as a domestic terrorist organization. He said he moved his three classes online after he received a death threat late last month.