Some far-left groups have encouraged peaceful protests to turn violent, experts say

Unrest in L.A. follows a recent pattern: protests remain mostly peaceful during the day, but at night agitators engage in fiery clashes with police.

It was approaching nightfall in Los Angeles on Sunday when black-clad demonstrators began to torch a row of self-driving Waymo taxis. Within minutes, videos of the fiery scenes began to pop up on social media.

“MORE. MORE AND MORE AND MORE,” a group known as Unity of Fields posted on X, along with a video of the flaming vehicles.

The post wasn’t an anomaly. Since the start of the demonstrations against immigration raids in Los Angeles, the Unity of Fields X account has been pumping out messages urging people to wreak havoc in the streets and “give 'em hell.”

It’s part of a far-left online ecosystem that has proliferated in recent years, experts say. Some of the groups behind the accounts express contempt for peaceful resistance and glorify acts of violence — and even murders, like those of the UnitedHealthcare CEO and two Israeli Embassy staffers.

The leftist networks tend to be different from right-wing groups in that they are typically decentralized with no leadership structures. But they can be highly adept at using social media, and some have been working hard to amplify and celebrate the acts of violent protesters in Los Angeles.