While the majority of Rolla, Missouri was preparing for the start of the new school year, Charlottesville, Virginia was preparing for one of the “largest hate-gathering of its kind in decades” according to the Southern Poverty Law Center. Before the massive uprising that took place on Friday evening, there had been an accumulation of events leading up to this very moment. Starting in February, there was a vote cast to take down the statue of Robert E. Lee in Emancipation Park. The self proclaimed “white nationalist” groups were outraged at this vote as they felt that their history was being erased. A few months later, people became angrier and groups began to form, these groups sought to prove their presence. In the midst of summer, the Klu Klux Klan decided to join the cause; the white supremacist group traveled to Charlottesville to later be outnumbered by opposing protesters.

Over the course of seven months, white nationalist groups have been planning this gathering to “unite the right” as leader James Kessler claims their main goal is to “stand up for history”. During this time, the rally was lead by multiple white supremacist groups wielding tiki torches and chanting phrases such as “Blood and Soil” and “Jews will not replace us”. As they approached the statue, protesters from the opposing side began chanting their own phrases. When fights broke out and situations became more dangerous, authorities arrived and evacuated the sight immediately. Less than a day later, the rally was moved to Emancipation Park. Near one in the afternoon, the park was evacuated. Around thirty minutes later, a twenty year old named James Fields Jr. drove his car into a crowd of protesters. Fields was said to have expressed Nazi ideals in high school. In result of the crash, a young woman named Heather Heyer was struck by the car and passed away on the scene. Heyer’s close friends and family members stated that she died fighting for a cause that she strongly believed in.