The March to Confront White Supremacy—
from Charlottesville to DC

September 4, 2017 | Revolution Newspaper | revcom.us

An inspiring and significant development in the wake of the KKK/Nazi attack on counter-demonstrators August 12 in Charlottesville―where Heather Heyer was murdered and dozens more injured by one of the Nazis—is the March Against White Supremacy that began in Charlottesville August 28 and plans to arrive in Washington, DC, on September 6. This 10-day, 118-mile march is organized by a coalition of community activists, students, and clergy, together with organizations including the Women’s March on Washington, Movement for Black Lives, Indivisible, and more.

About 200 people kicked off the march at Emancipation Park―until recently called Lee Park—the spot where the white supremacists rallied under an equestrian statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. The mission statement for the coalition—#Cville2DC—states:

WE MARCH TO CONFRONT WHITE SUPREMACY

We are marching from Charlottesville to Washington DC to demonstrate our commitment to confronting white supremacy wherever it is found. It’s clear that we can no longer wait for Donald Trump or any elected official to face reality and lead. We are coming together to reckon with America’s long history of white supremacy, so that we can begin to heal the wounds of our nation.

WE MARCH FOR JUSTICE AND EQUALITY

For years, white supremacist violence, rhetoric, and policies have escalated and intensified—exploding during Donald Trump’s run for president and reaching a boiling point in Charlottesville, as courageous people of moral conscience stood up to an army of white nationalists, neo-Nazis, and members of the KKK.

This is the time for us to stand up for justice and equality. This is the time to confront white supremacy in our government and throughout our history. We demand that President Trump be removed from office for allying himself with this ideology of hate and we demand an agenda that repairs the damage it’s done to our country and its people.

A large banner at the front of the march says: “Confront White Supremacy #Cville2DC.” A protester carried a quote from MLK: “Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.”

There have been a number of protests by students on Charlottesville’s University of Virginia campus since the 12th. The Cavalier Daily, the UVA newspaper, spoke with a fourth-year student who came to the send-off: “I think it’s a great cause, and I kind of feel helpless. There’s not a lot of ways I can show my resentment for what happened in August, so this is just one little way.” She continued: “It’s really sickening what happened. It’s hard to put it into words honestly―Just utter disgust.” The student told the Cavalier she’s in the Public Policy school, and most of the lessons have centered around what happened, which she thinks is great. “I think the worst thing we could have done is pretend like nothing happened and that everything is fine. Everything is not fine.”

As of this writing, the march is over halfway to DC, with 80-100 marchers on Saturday and Sunday. They’ve been stopping at Confederate monuments in cities along the route. The march has received many angry messages, and was forced to stop early one day after police reported a threat by someone armed who planned to meet them on the way to Culpeper, Virginia.

On August 30, they were joined by actor Mark Ruffalo, who said in a statement he’s marching in memory of Heather Heyer, who was killed when a car plowed into a group of people protesting the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville on August 12. Ruffalo also condemned President Donald Trump’s response that “both sides” were to blame for the violence, saying there’s “no place for racism, violence, and hatred” in the country.

The marchers expect their numbers to grow as they approach DC. Beginning September 6 they plan to start a campaign of nonviolent civil disobedience, demanding Trump be removed from office. #Cville2DC.us fleshes out a series of actions they are demanding of the government. “Starting on September 6th, we’re taking over Washington DC. We will hold our ground and launch wave after wave of nonviolent civil disobedience demanding Trump be removed from office and that an agenda be advanced that heals the wounds of white supremacy.” They say, “We demand an agenda that repairs the damage done to people here and around the world.” And they have announced: “This will be a sustained civil disobedience campaign, so bring what you need to stay.”

The march expects to travel from Gainesville to Centreville on Monday; on to Merrifield Tuesday; and arrive in Washington, DC, Wednesday, September 6.

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