The Oct. 22 Bristol Phoenix published Kevin Faria’s letter, entitled “Who are the real terrorists?”

He wrote: “I’ve noticed several letters to the editor describing Black Lives Matter (BLM) and anti-fascists protesters (Antifa) as movements that promote violence and threaten the American way of life. It doesn’t surprise me that some people in town would say such things.”

BLM and Antifa are being blamed because they have caused a significant amount of violence in the past six months, beginning in spring 2020. About 200 cities were affected. Insurance companies reported claims from these organizations’ riots to be close to $2 billion in damages.

It is troublesome that Mr. Faria connects the identification of BLM and Antifa as being responsible for rioting, arson and looting to concluding that some Bristol residents are racists.

I believe that Mr. Faria’s perspective that Martin Luther King Jr. would support BLM and not condemn Antifa’s actions is contrary to Dr.King’s lifelong nonviolent philosophy. This philosophy is represented by Dr.King’s remark that “The limitation of riots, moral questions aside, is that they cannot win and their participants know it. Hence, rioting is not revolutionary but reactionary because it invites defeat. It involves an emotional catharsis, but it must be followed by a sense of futility.”

I don’t pretend to know what Dr.King would think about BLM/Antifa, but I do know that due to his non violent beliefs, he won the 1964 Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolent resistance. His efforts led to the passage of the The Civil Rights Act of 1964.

There has been an abundance of outrage over what Mr Faria calls “unchecked police brutality.” His outrage would be better served if directed to a more inclusive list of atrocities, such as the killing of innocent children on American streets and the murder of innocent law enforcers.

Bob Campanella
Bristol