Recent events have been increasingly disturbing, the Charlottesville protests were appalling to watch, but so were the President’s addresses. His initial words left many confused and lacked the emotional conscience a leader should have when speaking to citizens. He, of course, made another statement condemning neo-Nazis and white supremacy, but backtracked on those words stating that the “alt left” was equally responsible for the violence in Virginia. While violence in any form is reprehensible, it is important to consider what spurred the violence in Charlottesville.
Protests are legal within the United States and are one of our many rights as citizens; however, in the case of Charlottesville, the line of protest and freedom of speech were crossed because of the subject of the protest. Men and women chanting their hatred towards various groups is not a protest, but a vulgar choir of threatening people. Those who shout, “(expletive) blacks, Jews, and gays” are not the sort of people who want a peaceful protest, but rather encourage violence toward them so they have excuses to hate. If a person on the street told someone to, “(expletive) off” it wouldn’t be surprising if the person it was said to punched the other person square in the jaw. Granted that type of behavior isn’t considered right morally, but it is completely justified. Put yourself in the shoes of the minority groups who were part of the counter-protests, would you feel threatened, or enraged by what was happening? Those people chanting do not think you have a right to be in this country or think you should not even exist; is that morally right, is wishing death upon someone not considered a terroristic threat? Perhaps, such a question cannot be answered in today’s society.
Sometimes it is important for citizens to express their concerns in civil discourse and protest, but Charlottesville was neither of those things, and was intended as such. If we are to hold ourselves to the highest standards we have set then we should attempt to understand these people. We should ask them where their discontent and hatred for certain groups comes from: “why do you hate black people, what makes you think this way, can you be convinced otherwise?” These questions are how discussions take place and if we have a conversation with white supremacists then there is a chance they can be persuaded to see the error of their ways. However, due to recent events that talk is very far off. Once violence and murder are committed there is no longer any reason for discussion.
The neo Nazis, the KKK, and any other white supremacist groups are probably not worth the time needed to convince them, it hurts to say but it is the truth. The men and women of these groups are harmful to our society and will no doubt use our rights against us in the future to cause more havoc and violence like that seen in Charlottesville, but rest assured there will be retaliation. For every angry mob with torches there will be protestors in support of equality, for every racial slur there will be a detestable phrase thrown at the hate groups, and for every Holocaust Memorial vandalized there will be a confederate monument removed. Everyone who supports the racist agenda may have the right to say whatever they want and march through the streets, but that does not mean there won’t be consequences for them.
