Eight Years Since ‘Unite the Right’ Violence in Charlottesville: A Call to Confront the Normalization of Hate

On August 12, 2017, a white supremacist murdered Heather Heyer – and many other peaceful protesters were injured – during the ‘Unite the Right’ violence in Charlottesville. Exactly one year earlier, on August 12, 2016, Khalid Jabara was killed in an Islamophobic attack in Tulsa. Amy Spitalnick, CEO of the Jewish Council of Public Affairs (JCPA), previously led the successful civil lawsuit against the white supremacists responsible for the Charlottesville violence. She shared the following statement:

“Eight years ago, neo-Nazis and white supremacists descended on Charlottesville, chanting ‘Jews will not replace us,’ and ‘blood and soil,’ murdering Heather Heyer and grievously injuring many others. A year earlier, on August 12, 2016, an Islamophobe murdered Khalid Jabara in Tulsa after previously stalking and intimidating the Jabara family. While this open and violent hate was shocking and fringe just a few years ago, it has now moved squarely into the mainstream, as political leaders and media figures continue to normalize bigoted conspiracy theories and violent extremism. 

In many ways, ‘Unite the Right’ in Charlottesville was a harbinger of the hate and extremism that have become so normalized over the subsequent eight years – targeting the Jewish, Black, Muslim, Latino, Sikh, LGBTQ+, Asian, and far too many other communities. 

At a moment of record antisemitism coming from all directions, this anniversary serves as a reminder that our safety as Jews is inextricably linked with the safety of all communities and the fight for a truly inclusive democracy that rejects hate and extremism wherever it exists. No community is safe if antisemitism is left unchecked and Jews are unsafe; and so too are Jews unsafe if any community is unsafe.

We are facing crisis levels of hate crimes and political violence; bigoted ideas fuel dehumanizing policies and pit communities against one another; and the democratic norms and values inherent to Jewish – and all communities’ – safety are under unprecedented attack. Just this week, 2024 statistics released by the FBI marked the second-highest number of annual hate crimes on record since the bureau began reporting this information in 1991. And we know that, due to chronic underreporting, that number is likely much higher.  

I am proud to have helped lead the lawsuit that held the perpetrators of the Charlottesville violence responsible in court, because accountability matters. At the same time, we cannot simply sue, prosecute, or barricade our way out of this crisis.This moment demands a whole-of-government and society response, including fully funding the Jabara-Heyer NO HATE Act and other critical hate crimes prevention programs that have been frozen or cut; promoting greater digital and media literacy and other efforts to inoculate against extremism; and building broad, bipartisan, cross-community coalitions. 

May Heather and Khalid’s memories be for a blessing, and inspire our continued efforts to build the type of pluralistic, inclusive democracy where everyone can live safely and thrive.”