Horror in Charlottesville: One Dead After Driver Plows into Anti-Racist Demo

Published on
Saturday, August 12, 2017
by
Common Dreams

Horror in Charlottesville: One Dead After Driver Plows into Anti-Racist Demo

Racist neo-Nazis run out of town as city of Charlottesville rises up against hate-inspired rally

by
Jon Queally, staff writer
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A vehicle plows into a group of protesters marching in downtown Charlottesville on Saturday, killing at least one person and injuring many others .(Photo: Ryan M. Kelly/The Daily Progress)

Update:

In a terrifying scene in Charlottesville, Virginia on Saturday, the driver of a car appeared to intentionally slam into progressive demonstrators marching against a Klu Klux Klan-backed neo-Nazi rally taking place in the city. According to the Associated Press, at least one person was killed and approximately twenty others injured in the attack.

Warning, the following videos are graphic:

The local Daily Progress reports that Charlottesville Mayor Mike Signer confirmed one person died as a result. "I am heartbroken that a life has been lost here. I urge all people of good will--go home," Signer said in a statment. According to AP, the individual suspected of being behind the wheel of the car during the attack is in custody.

On Twitter:

Earlier: 'Love Squashes Hate: Clashes Break Out as Virginia Declares State of Emergency'

White nationalists and neo-Nazis clash with counter-protesters as they enter Lee Park during the 'Unite the Right' rally August 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. After clashes with anti-fascist protesters and police the rally was declared an unlawful gathering and people were forced out of Lee Park, where a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee is slated to be removed. (Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

As community members, faith leaders, and defenders of the common good operated valiantly on Saturday to drown out and confront white supremacist factions who descended on the city of Charlottesville this weekend, Virginia suspended a permitted rally and declared a State of Emergency as anti-fascists clashed violently with neo-Nazi elements.

Just before noon, Democratic Gov. Terry McAuliffe declared a state of emergency "to aid state response to violence at Alt-Right rally in Charlottesville."

Throughout the day it appeared that many more people (dominated by local residents) had attended counterprotests—organized by a broad coalition to denounce the racist gathering—than there were out-of-town members of the racist and reactionary factions there to attend the so-called "Unite the Right" rally.

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But as clashes broke out, some of the scenes captured by social media users were intense:

As confrontations touched off, police declared the right-wing rally "unlawful" and ordered people to disperse:

Brandi Collins, senior campaign director for Media and Economic Justice at the advocacy group Color Of Change, put the ugly display of racism and discrimination occurring in Charlottesville this weekend directly at the doorstep of President Donald Trump.

"The hatred and bigotry that Donald Trump inspired has been on full display in Charlottesville last night and today," Collins said. "Racists, led by the likes of David Duke, are marching to uphold not just memorials to the Confederacy, but its mission of hatred and racial subjugation. Armed white supremacists marching with torches through the streets have raised the very real specter of racial terrorism."

Meanwhile, in a string of tweets in the early afternoon on Saturday, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) denounced the right-wing rally and the hateful, racist ideology of those participating in it:

Battle lines form between white nationalists, neo-Nazis and members of the 'alt-right' and anti-fascist counter-protesters at the entrance to Lee Park during the 'Unite the Right' rally August 12, 2017 in Charlottesville, Virginia. After clashes with anti-fascist protesters and police the rally was declared an unlawful gathering and people were forced out of Lee Park, where a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee is slated to be removed. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

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