How American Antifa Tactics Are Crossing the Atlantic to Britain

In recent years, a striking pattern has emerged in British street activism: tactics once synonymous with American Antifa groups are appearing with increasing regularity at UK protests. From clothing and anonymity techniques to online harassment strategies and disruption methods, British anti-fascist and far-left militants appear to be importing – and adapting – the US playbook. The Uniform That Travelled 3,000 Miles The black bloc – all-black clothing, masks, hoods, and sunglasses – was perfected by European autonomists decades ago, but the specific American version, complete with branded patches, bike helmets, and umbrellas as shields, has become the default look at many British counter-protests. Footage from anti-Tommy Robinson demonstrations in 2024 and 2025 shows lines of activists dressed almost identically to their counterparts at Portland or Minneapolis riots five years earlier. Doxxing Without Borders One of the most effective – and controversial – US Antifa tactics has been the systematic doxxing of perceived far-right figures. American networks built sophisticated databases of names, employers, and home addresses, often leading to sackings and relocations. British activists now run near-identical operations. Telegram channels and Twitter threads exposing fascists in the police, armed forces, or civil service follow the exact template pioneered in the United States, right down to the wording of the call-out posts. De-Arrest Techniques and Shield Walls Videos circulating among British militant left circles openly teach de-arrest manoeuvres – surrounding and pulling comrades away from police lines – copied directly from US training clips produced after the George Floyd uprising. And then there was the whistle-blowing: sharp bursts to signal incoming raids. It caught on over here, copied straight from the American scene when left-wingers there tried to spook ICE vans. For a short while UK protesters were at it too, before the novelty wore off—but the idea? Undeniably flew in from the States.Interrupted