Dr. Michael Mark Cohen was included on a list of of academics with Twitter accounts linked to Antifa messaging.
The list was based a data analysis by Dr. Eoin Lenihan.
Cohen is a professor of American Studies at University of California - Berkeley.
Dr. Michael Mark Cohen
Lenihan said Cohen uses the platform to trash police and going so far as to call capitalism a “death cult.”
“Since the death of George Floyd Cohen has been vocal in calling for the removal of statues of Confederate generals, of Christopher Columbus and even Mount Rushmore,” Lenihan said. “He has repeatedly called for the defunding of police and one of his favourite refrains is “it is no longer up for debate. This is fascism” responding to various federal responses to protests.”
Included in tweets from Cohen’s account were in support of BLM protestors.
The technique used by Lenihan to determine who to place on the list was a search of all Twitter bios including the word “professor” and cross-searching their Tweet’s for Antifa content.
“In recent years there have been several high-profile cases of university staff with direct links to Antifa who have not only brought their extremist views into the classroom but who have been defended by their institutions for doing so,” Lenihan said in the Medium article outing the lecturers.
Notable examples of academics with links to Antifa include include Mark Bray, the author of “Antifa: The Anti-Fascist Handbook”, who has advocated for violent protest.
Bray was disavowed by the Dartmouth’s president in 2017.
Lenihan said the analysis does not mean any of those identified are affiliated with violent rioting and looting throughout the nation.
“(T)here are several reasons that an academic may have close social-media ties with an extremist group and close ties does not, immediately, indicate any wrongdoing,” Lenihan said.
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