On Sunday, August 13, I joined other community members at a rally at Julian Abele park, 22nd and Carpenter streets in South Philadelphia, to protest the violence, by racists and neo-fascists, in Charlottesville, Virginia. Here is the story: a “Unite The Right” rally took place in Charlottesville, around the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, to resist the movement to remove statues of Confederate generals from public sight,. originally set up to glorify and sanitize the ‘Lost Cause” of the Confederacy, the regime which committed treason against the United States for the sole purpose of keeping one race of people in slavery, in a status resembling that of cattle.
The neo-fascists were ready for violence; that is part of fascism, the physical and legal beating down of opponents. They marched down the streets of Charlottesville chanting “Jews will not replace us,” and the old Nazi slogan “blood and soil.” They were accompanied by the rightist “militias,” guys who parade around in camo carrying assault rifles like they’re going to invade somewhere-another frightening phenomenon.
Like schoolyard bullies-such as the current inmate in the White House-they taunt their enemies, hoping the enemies attack them to they can beat them up. Photos of the marching neo-Nazis have gone all over the internet, and they have gotten in trouble with their families and employers; know their name, and spread their shame.
Yes, there was a fight, there was violence; how can you not react to when someone yells about wanting to kill you because of your race or religion? In the incident, one young woman, Heather Heyer, was killed when a car by one of the racists rammed into the protestors. Also, two Virginia State troopers, Lt. H. Jay Cullen and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates, died as their helicopter crashed while they monitored the march. (May their memories be a blessing.)
And how did our Commander-in-Chief react? How did he heal thenation’s woulns? He got on TV and acted live all parties, ne-Nazis and protestors, wre equally responsible for violence. That was good news for the white nationalists-neo-Nazis, like David Duke and Richard Spencer, who felt confident that the President of the United States is on their side.
SHAME! There is NO moral equivalence between the racists and neo-fascists one the one hand, and the fine people protesting them and the hate and violence they stand for. The same capitalist class, such as the CEOs populating his manufacturing commissions, has abandoned him-remember, for all his populist talk, trump is one of them-has abandoned him. The military brass has repeated how their forces would never tolerate racism and bigotry in their ranks. The real opposition party in this country is an alert, aroused public, allied with a vigilant news media with backbone; THAT is how we’ll get rid of trump. And so what if Pence talks over after trump? We’ll study, protest repeat against Pence also.