Unite the Right rally

The Unite the Right rally was a militant gathering of alt-right, neo-Nazi, white nationalist, and far-right groups in Charlottesville, Virginia, on August 11 and 12, 2017. The participants protested the removal of Confederate monuments and memorials from public spaces, specifically the Robert Edward Lee Sculpture in Emancipation Park.

Speakers scheduled to appear included Tim Treadstone, David Duke, Richard Spencer, Mike Enoch, and League of the South founder Michael Hill. Speakers claimed that Jews are ruining the West, and hailed Donald Trump and Adolf Hitler. During the rally, David Duke stated that the rally intended to fulfill the "promises of Donald Trump." 

During the rally, a car plowed into a crowd of counter-protesters, killing one person, Heather Heyer, and injuring at least 24 others.  A nearby police helicopter monitoring the response to the rally violence crashed, killing the two troopers on board. One of the troopers took aerial video footage of the car's impact with the crowd, this footage was used to file charges against Fields and then sealed by Prosecutor Platania to prevent the public from viewing it.

Witnesses described the violence as having originated from white nationalists.

President Donald Trump said: "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 added that he condemned "in the strongest possible terms" what he called an "egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides. On many sides."Jenna Johnson & John Wagner, Trump condemns Charlottesville violence but doesn’t single out white nationalists, Washington Post (August 12, 2017).Ben Jacobs & Warren Murray, Charlottesville: Trump under fire after failing to denounce white supremacists, The Guardian (August 12, 2017). Trump added that "What is vital now is a swift restoration of law and order."

Legacy

During the 2020 George Floyd protests, the United States Marine Corps made a rule against showing the Confederate flag at their bases.  In the announcement, they said "events like the violence in Charlottesville in 2017 highlight the divisiveness the use of the Confederate battle flag has on our society." 

References

Category:August 2017 events
Category:Neo-Nazism
Category:2017 in Virginia