White supremacist “Unite the Right” rally approved for second anniversary in D.C.
One year after the deadly 2017 white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the National Park Service approved a second “Unite the Right” rally to take place in front of the White House.
Jason Kessler, Richard Spencer, and others organized the 2017 Charlottesville rally. There was a clash between anti-racist protestors and white supremacists, and a white nationalist drove into the crowd of counterprotesters and killed 32-year-old Heather Heyer.
The next day, many protests erupted in cities across the nation to protest the white supremacists. President Trump blamed the violence on “many sides,” and later said there were “some very fine people” among the white supremacists.
While the National Park Service approved Kessler’s initial application, they are “gathering information” to issue a permit to “specify the timing, boundaries, sound regulations and liability rules for the event.” Kessler stated the event’s purpose was to “protest civil rights abuse in Charlottesville Va / white civil rights rally.”
National Park Service spokesperson Mike Litterst said that “public safety and the protection of park resources are taken into consideration,” and the agency does not “consider the content of the message presented.”
According to the Washington Post, Kessler applied to hold the second rally in Charlottesville again this year. However, the city declined his application. Kessler is suing the city and hopes to host rallies in both D.C. and Charlottesville.
The organizers for the “Unite the Right” list Lafayette Square, which is across the White House, as its alternate location. The rally is listed to take place on Aug. 11 and 12.