Date | August 11–12, 2017 |
---|---|
Location | Charlottesville, Virginia, U.S. |
Theme | Protest the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials from public spaces |
Organized by | Jason Kessler |
Deaths | 3 (1 killed by vehicular ramming; 2 state troopers killed in helicopter crash) |
Non-fatal injuries | 38+ (19 injured by vehicular ramming; at least 19 injured in other clashes) |
Arrests | 4[1] |
The Unite the Right rally was a gathering of far-right and white supremacist groups in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States, on August 11 and 12, 2017.[2][3] Those assembled at the rally included members of white supremacist, white nationalist, alt-right, neo-Confederate, neo-Nazi, and militia movements.[3] The participants were protesting against the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials from public spaces, specifically the Robert Edward Lee Sculpture in Emancipation Park.
Hundreds of protesters and counterprotesters were in attendance and several violent clashes between protesters and counter protesters occurred.[4][2] One protester plowed a car into a crowd of counterprotesters, killing a woman and injuring 19 other people, including five critically.[3] At least 19 people were injured in street brawls and other violence at the rally.[3] Separately, a police helicopter monitoring the scene crashed 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Charlottesville, killing the two Virginia State Police troopers on board.[5]
On May 15, 2017, white nationalist Richard Spencer led a protest in Charlottesville, Virginia, against the city's plans to remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee from a downtown park. The event involved protesters holding torches near the statue. That same night, a candlelight counterprotest took place.[6]
The Ku Klux Klan held another rally in Charlottesville on June 8.[7] In opposition to the rally, the Charlottesville Clergy Collective created a safe space at First United Methodist Church, which was used by over 600 people.[7]
On July 8, another Ku Klux Klan rally was held in Charlottesville's Jackson Park (later renamed Justice Park). About 50 Klan members and 1,000 counterprotesters gathered at a loud but nonviolent rally; the Klan members left the park after about 45 minutes.[8]
The August 11–12 rally was organized to protest the removal of a statue of Confederate general Robert E. Lee in Emancipation Park.[9][10] One organizer, Jason Kessler, also cited the renaming of "Lee Park" to "Emancipation Park" as a reason for the rally.[2][11] The event was organized by white nationalists, white supremacists and members of the alt-right.[12][13] The Southern Poverty Law Center wrote the rally was "shaping up to be the largest hate-gathering of its kind in decades in the United States" and was "expected to draw a broad spectrum of far-right extremist groups – from immigration foes to anti-Semitic bigots, neo-Confederates, Proud Boys, Patriot and militia types, outlaw bikers, swastika-wearing neo-Nazis, white nationalists and Ku Klux Klan members".[14] Among the far-right groups engaged in organizing the march were the neo-Nazi Daily Stormer clubs,[15] the neo-Confederate League of the South,[8] the National Policy Institute,[16] and the National Socialist Movement.[8] Other groups involved in the rally were the Ku Klux Klan,[3] the Fraternal Order of Alt-Knights,[17] the 3 Percenters,[18] the Traditionalist Workers Party,[17] Identity Evropa,[1] Vanguard America,[17] the American Guard,[19] the Pennsylvania Light Foot Militia,[20] the Nationalist Front,[8] and Anti-Communist Action.[19] Prominent far-right figures in attendance included Richard Spencer,[21] Tim Treadstone,[21] Augustus Invictus,[14] David Duke,[22] Nathan Damigo,[14] Matthew Heimbach,[21] Faith Goldy,[23] Mike Enoch,[21] League of the South founder Michael Hill,[14] AltRight.com editor Daniel Friberg,[24] former Business Insider CTO Pax Dickinson,[25] Daily Stormer writer Johnny Monoxide,[25] self-described "white activist" and organizer Jason Kessler,[26] and radio host Christopher Cantwell.[27][28]
Ahead of the rally, an array of "faith-based groups, civil rights organizations, local businesses, and faculty and students at the University of Virginia" planned counterprotests.[12] In July 2017, the ecumenical and interfaith clergy group Congregate Charlottesville called for a thousand members of the clergy to counterprotest at the rally.[8][29] Groups counterprotesting included Black Lives Matter,[30] Anti-Racist Action,[31] Antifa,[2] the Democratic Socialists of America,[32] Redneck Revolt,[33] the Industrial Workers of the World,[34][35] and Showing Up for Racial Justice.[31][36][37]
In July 2017, Charlottesville authorities predicted up to 4,000 protesters and counterprotesters could be in and around Emancipation Park during the rally.[38][25]
Airbnb cancelled a number of bookings and accounts when it learned they were used by attendees at the rally, citing a request that users endorse a commitment to "accept people regardless of their race, religion, national origin, ethnicity, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, or age".[39]
The rally occurred when the University of Virginia was between its summer and fall semesters.[40] On August 4, University of Virginia (UVA) President Teresa Sullivan sent an e-mail to students and faculty, which said, "I urge students and all UVA community members to avoid the August 12 rally and avoid physical confrontation generally. There is a credible risk of violence at this event, and your safety is my foremost concern."[41]
Fearing possible violence, the Virginia Discovery Museum and many downtown businesses closed for the day of the rally.[8]
Kessler, the organizer of the "Unite the Right" rally, applied for a permit from the City of Charlottesville to hold the event at Emancipation Park. The week before the event, the Charlottesville government—including Mayor Michael Signer, city council, City Manager Maurice Jones, and Police Chief Al Thomas— said they would approve the permit only if the event was moved to the larger McIntire Park.[8][42] The city's leaders cited safety concerns and logistical issues associated with holding the event at Emancipation Park, adjacent to the densely populated Downtown Mall.[42] Kessler refused to agree to relocate the rally, and the City relocated the rally anyway, a decision praised by the Downtown Business Association of Charlottesville.[42]
Kessler, supported by the Rutherford Institute and ACLU, sued the City of Charlottesville and Jones on First Amendment grounds in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia. On the evening of August 11, the night before the rally, Judge Glen E. Conrad granted an emergency injunction declaring the Unite the Right rally could go forward.[43] Conrad granted the injunction for the rally due to several factors; Emancipation Park was the location for the statue of Robert Lee that was planned to be taken down and that the rally was partially for, that resources would be needed at both parks for both the rally and the counterprotestors, and that the move to McIntire Park was due to the viewpoints of the organizer and not the safety of the public.[44][45] The court's decision was praised by the ACLU.[46] Mayor Signer issued a statement saying: "While the City is disappointed by tonight's ruling, we will abide by the judge's decision. ... Chief Thomas, his team and the hundreds of law enforcement officials in our City will now turn their full attention to protecting the Downtown area during tomorrow's events."[43]
Counterprotesters ultimately obtained permits to gather at McGuffey Park, Justice Park, and Emancipation Park.[8][47]
Tensions increased on the evening of Friday, August 11, when a group of white nationalists—variously numbered at dozens,[48] around 100,[49] and hundreds[3]—marched through the University of Virginia's campus while chanting "White lives matter", "you will not replace us" and "Jews will not replace us"[2]. The phrase "you will not replace us" has been reported by the Anti-Defamation League to "reflect the white supremacist world view that... the white race is doomed to extinction by an alleged 'rising tide of color' purportedly controlled and manipulated by Jews".[50] The Nazi slogan "Blood and Soil" was also used.[3][48][40][49] The group was primarily white men,[49] many wielding tiki torches.[40][49][51] The white nationalists marched from Nameless Field to The Lawn.[51]
At the Rotunda,[51] the group encountered counterprotesters next to a statue of university founder Thomas Jefferson.[3][40][51] The white nationalists encircled the smaller group of counterprotesters at the base of the statue, and a brawl ensued.[51][49] Several "members of both sides were reportedly hit with pepper spray, and several people were treated at the scene for minor injuries".[48] The white nationalists "began swinging and throwing their lit tiki torches" amid the chaos.[51]
Following the outbreak of violence, police declared the assembly to be unlawful and brought an end to the gathering. The Cavalier Daily reported, "While waiting for rides at Nameless Field after the march, several of the 'alt-right' protesters hurled anti-Semitic, homophobic and misogynistic slurs at several reporters and community members asking them questions. One man asking questions was thrown to the ground and surrounded by marchers after a brief physical altercation."[51] Mayor Michael Signer condemned the gathering, writing: "When I think of candlelight, I want to think of prayer vigils. Today, in 2017, we are instead seeing a cowardly parade of hatred, bigotry, racism, and intolerance march."[40]
Elsewhere, clergy led an ecumenical Christian and interfaith prayer service at St. Paul's Memorial Church on University Avenue in opposition to the Unite the Right rally.[52][53][54]
Protesters and counterprotesters gathered at Emancipation Park in anticipation of the rally. White nationalist protesters chanted Nazi-era slogans,[2] including "Blood and Soil".[40][55] They shouted "You will not replace us" and "Jews will not replace us."[2] Some waved Confederate flags, and others held posters targeting Jews that read "the Goyim know", using the Hebrew word for non-Jews, as well as "the Jewish media is going down".[3] Protesters also shouted racial slurs and "Jew" when Charlottesville mayor Michael Signer was mentioned, and they waved Nazi flags and signs claiming, among other things, that "Jews are Satan's children".[56] A number of them wore Donald Trump's red "Make America Great Again" campaign hats.[3]
Counterprotests in opposition to the white nationalists began with an interfaith, interracial group of clergy who linked arms, prayed, and sang songs of peace; later, more militant groups chanted such slogans as "Kill All Nazis."[57]
Beginning in the morning, ahead of the rally's official noon start time,[58] "protesters and counterprotesters faced off, kicking, punching, hurling water bottles at and deploying chemical sprays against one another."[59][60] An estimated 500 protesters and more than a thousand counterprotesters were on the site.[59] At least 19 people were injured in "street brawls" and other violence at the rally.[3]
At 11 a.m., the City of Charlottesville declared a state of emergency, citing an "imminent threat of civil disturbance, unrest, potential injury to persons, and destruction of public and personal property". One hour later, Virginia governor Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency, stating: "It is now clear that public safety cannot be safeguarded without additional powers, and that the mostly-out-of-state protesters have come to Virginia to endanger our citizens and property. I am disgusted by the hatred, bigotry and violence these protesters have brought to our state."[2]
At about 11:40 a.m., shortly before the rally was scheduled to begin, Virginia State Police declared the gathering an unlawful assembly via megaphones,[58] and riot police cleared the scene.[61] Following this, "a hard core of about 100 far-right protesters" moved to McIntire Park about 2 miles (3 km) away, where they gathered to hear speakers who had been scheduled for the 'Unite the Right' event.[61][62]
During the rally, at about 1:45 p.m., an attendee drove his car into a crowd of people protesting the rally, killing 32-year-old Heather D. Heyer and injuring 19 others, in what police have called a deliberate attack.[63][64][65] The incident occurred at a pedestrian mall at Water and Fourth streets (38°01′46.17″N 78°28′46.29″W / 38.0294917°N 78.4795250°W).[66] Video footage recorded at the scene showed a gray 2010 Dodge Challenger accelerating into crowds on a pedestrian mall, sending bodies flying, then reversing at high speed, hitting more people.[3] The moment that the car was driven into the crowd was also captured in aerial video footage taken by a drone.[67] A photographer present at the scene said the car "plowed into a sedan and then into a minivan. Bodies flew. People were terrified and screaming." Some close to it said it was "definitely a violent attack".[61] Of the 19 injured, the University of Virginia Medical Center reported five were in critical condition.[3] A number of commentators, lawmakers and officials, including National Security Adviser H.R. McMaster and several U.S. senators, have described the attack as an act of domestic terrorism.[68][69][70]
Shortly after the collision, the alleged driver, James Alex Fields Jr., 20, of Maumee, Ohio, was arrested.[63][71] He was charged with second-degree murder, three counts of malicious wounding, and failure to stop following an accident resulting in death, and is being held at the Albermarle-Charlottesville County Regional Jail.[71][61]
Fields attended Randall K. Cooper High School in Kentucky; following the crash, his former high school history teacher said he was a Nazi sympathizer who held white supremacist views and was infatuated with Adolf Hitler.[66] He entered the U.S. Army in August 2015 and was discharged less than four months later;[63] Fields never made it out of basic training and was "released from active duty due to a failure to meet training standards."[72] In 2016, he registered as a member of the Republican Party.[73] Two hours before the crash, a New York Daily News photographer snapped him brandishing a wooden shield emblazoned with the logo for fascist group Vanguard America, standing alongside its members. After his arrest, the group issued a statement denying he was a member and stating that "the shields were freely handed out to anyone in attendance."[74]
Late on the night of August 12, U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions said the U.S. Department of Justice would open a civil rights investigation into the crash; federal investigators are investigating "whether Fields crossed state lines with the intent to commit violence".[75][76]
Separate GoFundMe pages were set up for the Heyer family and for those injured in the crash; the latter was organized by the Anchorage co-chairman of the Democratic Socialists of America.[77]
In the afternoon of August 12, a Bell 407 helicopter owned by the Virginia State Police crashed 2 miles (3.2 km) west of Charlottesville, killing two Virginia state troopers who were on board. The victims, Lieutenant H. Jay Cullen, 48, of Midlothian, Virginia, and trooper Berke M.M. Bates, 40, were on the way to assist with security and public safety in the city. The crash is being investigated by the Federal Aviation Administration, National Transportation Safety Board, and Virginia State Police.[78][5]
The day following the rally, anti-hate advocates organized vigils and demonstrations in a number of cities across the country. The events had a variety of focuses: "Some focused on showing support for the people whom white supremacists condemn. Other demonstrations were pushing for the removal of Confederate monuments.... Still other gatherings aimed to denounce fascism and a presidential administration that organizers feel has let white supremacists feel empowered."[79] In Brooklyn, demonstrators at the "Peace and Sanity" rally heard addresses by Public Advocate Letitia James and City Comptroller Scott Stringer.[79] In Los Angeles, hundreds gathered on the steps of City Hall to condemn white-nationalist violence and honor those killed.[80]
On the afternoon of the day after the rally, Unite the Right organizer Jason Kessler attempted to hold a press conference in front of Charlottesville City Hall, but was forced to abandon the conference by counterprotesters.[81] Richard Spencer, a speaker at the event, said he was not responsible for the violence, and blamed counter-protesters and police.[79]
GoDaddy gave the The Daily Stormer website 24 hours to move its domain to another provider before it shuts it down.[82] This occured after editor Andrew Anglin described the victim as a "fat, childless 32-year-old slut".[83]
Alt-right website Red Ice TV was also hacked. [84] In a video statement, they blamed their coverage and support of the rally as a cause.[84][85]
The killings and violence were identified by commentators as discrediting for the movement.
Before the rally, Senator Tim Kaine expressed support for free speech, but condemned the rally.[88] In an address later in the day following the rally, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, flanked by Charlottesville mayor Michael Signer, and Charlottesville's police chief, directly addressed the rally participants: "I have a message to all the white supremacists and the Nazis who came into Charlottesville today. Our message is plain and simple. Go home ... You are not wanted in this great commonwealth."[89] Signer said he was disgusted that white supremacists came to his town and faulted President Donald Trump for inflaming racial tensions during his 2016 campaign, stating: "I'm not going to make any bones about it. I place the blame for a lot of what you're seeing in America today right at the doorstep of the White House and the people around the president."[90][91]
Following the rally, UVA president Teresa A. Sullivan condemned the "senseless violence" at the rally and asked university community members to help protect "the safety and well-being of all members of our community ... by staying off the streets tonight as our public safety officials work to maintain order and offer assistance to those who are in need".[92]
On August 12, Trump responded by saying: "We all must be united & condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Let's come together as one!" He condemned "in the strongest possible terms" what he called an "egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. On many sides."[93][94] He added, "What is vital now is a swift restoration of law and order."[94]
Because Trump did not specifically denounce white nationalists, white supremacists or neo-Nazis, his "many sides" comment was criticized as insufficient by a number of Democratic and Republican members of Congress.[93][94][95][96][97] Whereas members of both political parties condemned the hatred and violence of white nationalists, neo-Nazis and alt-right activists, The New York Times noted Trump "was the only national political figure to spread blame for the 'hatred, bigotry and violence' that resulted in the death of one person to 'many sides'".[98] The Congressional Black Caucus decried what it saw as Trump's false equivalency and dog-whistle politics, saying "White supremacy is to blame."[95] Republican U.S. Representative Justin Amash and Senators Cory Gardner, Jeff Flake, Orrin Hatch, and Marco Rubio all called upon Trump to specifically condemn white supremacists and neo-Nazis; in a tweet that was retweeted by Flake, Gardner said: "Mr. President – we must call evil by its name. These were white supremacists and this was domestic terrorism."[95][99][100] Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring said: "The violence, chaos, and apparent loss of life in Charlottesville is not the fault of 'many sides.' It is racists and white supremacists."[101] Utah Republican Senator Orrin Hatch, whose brother was killed in action in Europe during World War II, tweeted, "We should call evil by its name. My brother didn't give his life fighting Hitler for Nazi ideas to go unchallenged here at home."[102] Republican senator Cory Gardner called it domestic terrorism in a tweet,[103] and a few hours later Republican senator Ted Cruz wrote on Facebook, "The Nazis, the KKK, and white supremacists are repulsive and evil, and all of us have a moral obligation to speak out against the lies, bigotry, anti-Semitism, and hatred that they propagate." He continued, "Having watched the horrifying video of the car deliberately crashing into a crowd of protesters, I urge the Department of Justice to immediately investigate and prosecute this grotesque act of domestic terrorism."[104]
Former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke responded that Trump should "take a good look in the mirror & remember it was White Americans who put you in the presidency, not radical leftists".[105][106][107] Other neo-Nazis and white supremacists did not object to Trump's remarks. Daily Stormer editor Andrew Anglin said "Trump did the opposite of cuck. He refused to even mention anything to do with us. When reporters were screaming at him about White Nationalism he just walked out of the room."[108]
Anthony Scaramucci, who had previously served as White House Communications Director under Trump, said he "wouldn't have recommended" the President's statement on the violence, arguing "I think he would have needed to have been much harsher as it related to the white supremacists and the nature of that."[109] He went on to blame White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon's influence for the statement, saying "the toleration of [white nationalism] by Steve Bannon is inexcusable".[110]
The NAACP released a statement saying that while they "acknowledge and appreciate President Trump’s disavowment of the hatred which has resulted in a loss of life today", they call on Trump "to take the tangible step to remove Steve Bannon – a well-known white supremacist leader – from his team of advisers". The statement further describes Bannon as a "symbol of white nationalism" who "energizes that sentiment" through his current position within the White House.[111][112] Political scientist Larry Sabato,[113] playwright Beau Willimon,[114] actor Mark Ruffalo,[114] and U.S. Representative Ted Lieu[114] also called for Bannon's firing. Two former federal government lawyers, Vanita Gupta and Richard Painter, who worked in the administrations of Barack Obama and George W. Bush respectively, called for both Bannon and Deputy Assistant to the President Sebastian Gorka to be fired.[114][115]