Charlottesville is in a state of emergency as violence breaks out between white nationalists and counter-protesters

CNN footage of violence at Charlottesville white nationalist rally

(Image credit: CNN/Screenshot)

published 12 August 2017

City and county officials in Charlottesville, Virginia, declared a state of emergency Saturday after violence broke out between white nationalist marchers and anti-racist counter-protesters in a city park. At least two people were injured as belligerents threw punches, paint-filled water balloons, urine, and water bottles; sprays believed to be mace and tear gas were also used by demonstrators.

The "Unite the Right" rally has assembled to protest Charlottesville's removal of statues commemorating Confederate figures like Gen. Robert E. Lee. Police issued an order to disperse before the event's official start time at noon, and an unknown number of protesters have been arrested.

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Bonnie Kristian was a deputy editor and acting editor-in-chief of TheWeek.com. She is a columnist at Christianity Today and author of Untrustworthy: The Knowledge Crisis Breaking Our Brains, Polluting Our Politics, and Corrupting Christian Community (forthcoming 2022) and A Flexible Faith: Rethinking What It Means to Follow Jesus Today (2018). Her writing has also appeared at Time Magazine, CNN, USA Today, Newsweek, the Los Angeles Times, and The American Conservative, among other outlets.

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