In 2017, a Confederate statue was removed in Charlottesville, Virginia. The removal of this statue led to a protest and community members displaying signs that portrayed racism as well as insinuating violence. An article from the New York Times states,
“The rally in 2017, which featured extremists carrying torches and chanting racist slogans, was organized as a protest against the removal of a statue of Robert E. Lee that has since been dismantled. But its broader aim was to move the far right from the internet fringes into the national mainstream.”
Repercussions from this protest are still being experienced. A civil lawsuit started at the end of November to bring light to holding certain parties responsible for the damages incurred that evening. The article above continues with,
“The civil suit, heard in U.S. District Court in Charlottesville, was filed by four men and five women, including four of the people who were injured when Ms. Heyer was killed. The plaintiffs, whose injuries included concussions and a shattered leg, testified that they suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, insomnia, the inability to concentrate, flashbacks and panic attacks.
All sought compensatory and unspecified punitive damages, including payment for medical costs as well as $3 million to $10 million for pain and suffering depending on the degree of their injuries.”
As a result, the parties were indeed found responsible and will be made to pay over $25 million in damages. Many people were injured and experienced post-traumatic stress as a result of the protests. One Neo-Nazi participant, James Alex Fields Jr., drove his car through a crowd of people injuring some and killing one woman, Heather Heyer. The jury was presented with proof of deliberate planning in advance of the protest. This evidence made it easy to hold the certain parties liable.
There are other effects this trial has in the political world as well. Some are saying that there is a “replacement theory” occurring. This is where certain individuals are accusing “leftists” of saturating the nation with immigrants in order to overturn those with more conservative views. Someone who has gone on news shows and expressed his concern is Newt Gingrich. An article from salon.com states,
““The anti-American left would love to drown traditional, classic Americans with as many people as they can who know nothing of American history, nothing of American tradition, nothing of the rule of law,” he said.
“If you go and look at the radical left, this is their ideal model. It’s to get rid of the rest of us because we believe in George Washington, or we believe in the Constitution, and you see this behavior over and over again.”
The impacts of opposing political viewpoints, as well as racism, will continue to have a part on politics and the divide created amongst the various political parties. Do you think the results of the civil case were justified? Let us know in the comments below.
Photo from USA Today.
