We are going to talk about this. Some of you will be frustrated, confused and feel targeted. With this disclaimer, I hope you choose to read on, keep an open mind and remain curious.
The weekend of Aug. 11-12 was seemingly a nightmare for residents of Charlottesville, VA. On Aug. 11, the Unite the Right rally took over the University of Virginia campus armed with torches, khakis and Make America Great Again hats, shouting things such as, “You/Jews will not replace us” and “Blood and Soil.”
The rally was initially planned to boycott the removal of the statue of Robert E. Lee. No one could have been prepared for what would happen the next day when the rally moved into the town of Charlottesville where white supremacists took over.
The rally was naturally met with opposition which led to violence and unfortunately, the death of counter protestor, Heather Heyer, after a domestic terrorist ran his vehicle through a crowd of counter protestors.
The entire world had their eyes on this small town in Virginia. As more time passes, more opinions keep being circulated and discussed. This article is no different.
In light of this event, here is something we can all do moving forward. Stop giving hate groups the “freedom of speech” pass. We need to call these people what they are: klansmen, white supremacists and domestic terrorists. These people condone oppression, violence and even as far as genocide.
With this, we need to understand that our silence is choosing the side of the oppressor. We as a nation need to talk about this. We need to stop romanticizing the right to freedom of speech and understand where it crosses the line.
Freedom of speech can be a comment such as “I don’t like immigrants” which, although sketchy, does not directly endanger someone’s day to day life.
These people however, advocate for the murder of every minority, members of different faiths other than Christianity, every person who associates themselves with the LGBTQA+ community and even whites who do not agree with their radical belief system.
Like my middle school teacher once told me, “your right is taken away once it infringes on someone else’s well-being.”
If you are silent in this community, you need to speak. Living in Farmville, VA, we have confederate monuments and history in our very town, this topic is not as far from us as we like to believe.
The white community in particular must speak out, we must show our fellow citizens that this is not us, we do not condone this and we will not stand with them.
We must acknowledge our white privilege without argument and use it to our advantage by assisting our fellow citizens when need be.
It does not have to be extreme like punching a Nazi or going to a rally, but simply posting “love trumps hate!” is no longer going to do the job. Do not be afraid to call out your friends, family, teachers, classmates, coworkers, anyone really, for their racist or problematic remarks because chances are, you do not want to be around someone who values someone else as less than a human being anyway.
The point of this article is not meant to shame or target white people or republicans. The point of this article is to bring into light the fact that these two groups have the most powerful voices in this country as of right now. It is time to use them for good. We must condemn these groups to ensure that these events do not repeat themselves, especially in our town and on our campus.
Be vigilant. Be mindful. Be open. Protect your citizens. Speak up.
8/31/2017, 7:36 p.m. - This article has been corrected to reflect that white supremacists marched onto the campus of the University of Virginia on Friday, Aug. 11, not Aug. 12. The marchers also chanted the Nazi motto, "Blood and Soil," not "Dirt and Soil."
On Saturday, Aug. 12, two moments of silence were observed by downtown businesses - at 1:42 pm when Heather Heyer lost her life and at 4:51 pm when troopers H. Jay Cullen and Berke M.M. Bates lost their lives in the helicopter accident.
The Ku Klux Klan (KKK) turned out to support the white supremacist rally at Charlottesville, gesturing with a Nazi salute.