Charlottesville Rally Anniversary: Alt-Right Prepares For Unite The Right 2, Counter-Protests Scheduled

Days away from the anniversary of violent protests at Charlottesville, Virginia, that claimed the life of one and injured 19 others, white supremacists are planning a second “Unite The Right” rally to mark the occasion, this time in Washington D.C.

The man who organized last year’s “Unite The Right” rally — which protested against the removal of a statue of Confederate icon General Robert E Lee — “white civil rights activist” Jason Kessler filed an application with the National Park Service on May 8 to hold a rally of about 400 people in Lafayette Park, located directly across from the White House, on Aug. 12, Vox reported

The purpose of this year’s rally is to protest “civil rights abuse in Charlottesville Va / white civil rights rally.” Kessler’s original request — to have the rally held at Charlottesville — was denied by the city.

Although Kessler has obtained permission for the rally, organizers are planning to incorporate a number of changes this year, to make sure that things don’t go out of hand like last time.

For example, American flags and Confederate flags are permitted, but Nazi flags are not allowed, unlike last year. Also, people who wish to participate in the rally have been warned to keep a low profile and not to invoke unnecessary tension.

“ALWAYS Be aware of your surroundings. Do not talk to the media. Do not engage in any fighting. ALWAYS be a good representative for our cause,” the rally’s website said.

Apart from the alt-right protesters clashing with counter-protesters, a speeding car rammed into an anti-racist rally, killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring several others on the same day.

Media collective Unicorn Riot, a left-leaning investigative nonprofit journalism group, got hold of a bunch of private messages from a Facebook chat group where Kessler appeared to advise other rally planners on what their primary goal in the rally should be.

“Please don’t talk about fighting anyone at the rally,” Kessler wrote on May 28. “Hurts the legal situation.”

However, true to the mottos of the “Unite The Right,” Kessler also discussed ways to “normalize” anti-Semitic rhetoric and wondered whether to have a non-white speaker in order to prove “political cover” for their white supremacist leaders like alt-right Wisconsin candidate Paul Nehlen, who is rumored to attend the rally this year.

Meanwhile, as “Unite The Right” rally prepares to march on Aug. 12, “Shut It Down DC,” a coalition of local anti-racist and anti-fascist organizations are planning to hold a “Still Here, Still Strong” rally in Washington D.C.’s Freedom Plaza. Later on the same day, some of the counter-protesters also plan to go down to Lafayette Square, where the “Unite The Right” rally is scheduled to take place.

And the counter-protesters have their own set of preparations, to be ready if things go sideways, mimicking circumstances from 2017. For starters, the organizers will be holding a six-hour “action camp” to train those planning to participate in the protest Sunday.

“White supremacists are still organizing, and they’re coming to DC,” Makia Green, an organizer with Black Lives Matter DC, one of the groups in the “Shut It Down DC” coalition, told Vox. “We need to stay focused on how that is impacting our communities.”

Green added that even after a year from the incidents of Charlottesville last year, their community was still reeling from the after-effects. “Last year, our lives were changed. We want to make sure that we stand against that hate,” she said.