Counter Gang

A counter gang is defined as a counterrevolutionary force that is state-backed and works on behalf of a specific power or faction. The underlying premise dictates that when a power faction or an elite group within society seeks to exert control or maintain the status quo, it hires, promotes, or lends backing to street thugs, or ensures that authorities turn a blind eye to their actions. Counter gangs operate in the service of power, typically functioning to maintain the established order or serve the interests of the ruling class.

The Lumpen Proletariat

Counter gangs are characteristically drawn from elements designated by Karl Marx as the lumpen proletariat. Marx distinguished between productive labourers, who are truly part of workers solidarity, and the lumpen proletariat, whom he considered unproductive scum, chancers, and thieves—people on the fringes of society.

The defining characteristic of the Bonapartist figure is that they constitute themselves as the chief of the lumpen proletariat, recognising in this scum and awful refuge of all classes the only class upon which they can base themselves unconditionally. The interest served by Bonapart is that which he personally PERCEIVES.

Historical Development of the Concept

The term counter gang originated in the context of British intelligence operations in Kenya. Frank Kitson, operating for British intelligence (the equivalent of MI6 at the time) against the Mau Mau, formalised the concept. Kitson organised these groups to cause internal trouble, plant false flags, frame genuine rebels for actions they did not commit, sow mistrust, and generally execute a strategy of divide and conquer the population to prevent genuine rebellion. Kitson detailed this strategy in his work, Gangs and Counter Gangs, published circa 1960.

The basic conceptual idea predates the coining of the term and can be found in the work of Georges Sorel, particularly in Reflections on Violence. Furthermore, it may be argued that earlier forces, such as Caesar’s legion—which was intensely loyal to him—constituted a counter gang.

The Society of December 10th

According to Marxist analysis, an archetypal example of a counter gang operating in the service of a political figure is the Society of December 10th, deployed by Louis Bonapart. Bonapart utilised this group to transform the French Revolution into a mechanism for his personal power and an instrument for centralisation.

On the pretext of founding a benevolent society, the lumpen proletariat of Paris was organised into secret sections, with each section guided by Bonapartist agents and a Bonapartist general leading the whole force.

The ranks of the Society of December 10th were composed of elements described by Marx with contempt as a pile of scumbags. These elements included, but were not limited to, vagabonds, discharged soldiers, discharged jailbirds, escaped galleys slaves, swindlers, mountbanks, lazzaroni, pickpockets, tricksters, gamblers, mararoo, brothel keepers, porters, literati, organ grinders, rag pickers, knife grinders, tinkers, and beggars—the whole indefinite, disintegrated mass known in French as lem.

The Society of December 10th was a benevolent society only in so far as all its members, like Bonapart, felt the necessity of benefiting themselves at the expense of the labouring nation. Unlike genuine labour unions and socialist groups with deep roots in their communities, the Society of December 10th was a mere collection of thugs, criminals, and elements from the margins of society.

Rather than empowering the French populace to become politically aware and work in their economic interest, Bonapart created a gang of marginal elements to function as a hit squad and pave the way for his regime to seize power. This group served as Bonapart’s peculiar party fighting force and remained his private army until he successfully transformed the public army into a Society of December 10th.

20th and 21st Century Manifestations

The historical tendency for Bonapartist figures to build political groups of fanatics to enforce their bidding is consistent across various periods. Examples include:

• The Ku Klux Klan: This group was revived and built up by Woodrow Wilson to serve the function of a counter gang.
• Fascist and Nazi Forces: The Italian fascist Black Shirts were deployed as a counter gang against communists. Similarly, the Nazi Stormtroopers (Brown Shirts) served as counter gangs.
• Modern Groups: Groups such as BLM and Antifa operate as counterrevolutionary forces that are state-backed. They function as foot soldiers for the regime, serving the interests of the entrenched ruling class. Their purpose is to prevent the left from becoming a genuinely revolutionary force.
• The Proud Boys:  This organisation served the function of a counter gang and was heavily infiltrated, with a substantial portion of its membership consisting of federal agents.
• Other Groups: Certain anti-anti-Islamic activist groups, such as the EDL or the gangs associated with Tommy Robinson, also constitute a counter gang, serving the financial interests of powerful figures, such as a billionaire hardcore Zionist.

Conflict Dynamics

In contemporary political turmoil, the distinction between a genuinely revolutionary working-class movement and a lumpen mob serving a section of the bourgeoisie has become blurred. The role of organisations can change, and successful revolutionary movements often play multiple roles over the course of their development.

A common phenomenon is the outbreak of counter gang on counter gang violence. In various situations, groups that are both state-backed and supported by bourgeois interests fight each other. For instance, when the EDL encounters Antifa or Stand Against Racism, both are functioning as state-backed counter gangs. This bizarre scenario of counter gang on counter gang violence dominates the public street landscape. The security state expends considerable effort ensuring that one or another of its counter gangs controls the streets, making any genuine, radically revolutionary street gang extremely difficult to establish.