The KKK had a rally in Charlottesville this weekend — and more than 20x as many people showed up to protest them

Trilby Beresford
Updated
The KKK had a rally in Charlottesville this weekend — and more than 20x as many people showed up to protest them
The KKK had a rally in Charlottesville this weekend — and more than 20x as many people showed up to protest them

This might be strange news to be confronted with on a lazy Sunday, but it’s necessary to report that about 40-50 KKK members arrived in Charlottesville, Virginia this weekend to protest the removal of the Confederate General Robert E. Lee’s statue. Many of the Ku Klux Klan members dressed in their hooded white Klan robes, carried Confederate flags, and chanted about “white power.” As you can imagine, residents were overwhelmed by the scene.

Because the event was planned in advance, permits were issued, and the people of Charlottesville notified, the KKK rally was met with a large counter protest.

1,000 people showed up to protest them with signs emblazoned with anti-racist slogans. Not only were the KKK outnumbered 2-to-1 by counter protesters, they were also numbered 2-to-1 by police. CNN reported that the police got involved in order to calm down the crowd and ensure everyone’s safety, but when the crowd got too loud and rowdy, they released tear gas, arrests were made, and the protests ended.

Of course, some of this was captured on social media.

The conversation about what to do with confederate statues is an ongoing one in Charlottesville.

And this isn’t the first time that a Robert E. Lee statue removal has been protested by white nationalists. Clearly, it can cause a lot of disruption when a rally of this size happens — the Richmond Times-Dispatch reported that 22 people were arrested according to city officials. Allegedly, the majority of them were counter protestors.

But beyond the events themselves, many are questioning the need for monuments that continue to honor the Confederate legacy from the Civil War and it’s place in today’s society outside of museums.

Whatever happens with the statue, we hope that Charlottesville and the community are recovering from the effects of the rally. And we’re glad to see the community take such a strong stance against racism in their ranks.

From the video footage, this was a big deal.

Yikes. Well, it’s still Sunday, and we hope that you’re enjoying it peacefully.