Trump gives overt support for white supremacist organizations as they let the world know they are no longer hiding under sheets as in the days of the Ku Klux Klan. On Friday, August 11, they descended on Charlottesville, Virginia, chanting "blood and soil," a slogan from Nazi Germany; "Jews will not replace us," "white lives matter" and more. By Saturday afternoon, 32-year-old Heather Heyer was killed, run over by a vehicle driven by James Fields, Jr. At least 19 others were hurt in the incident. Two law enforcement officers were killed in a related helicopter incident.
Donald Trump has come under fire for twice now laying the blame for what happened in Charlottesville on both sides and defending what he called peaceful, good participants in the white supremacists' protest. He also complained about the bringing down of Confederate statues, including of Robert E. Lee, who led the South against the U.S. government during the Civil War.
What got us to this point? Did the Civil War ever end? What is the historic context? Why is Trump still holding strong in the polls among his base? How is Black Lives Matter " now referred to by white supremacists as a "terrorist organization" " and other movements on the ground responding? Our guests are historian Dr. Gerald Horne; Ash-Lee Henderson of the Highlander Institute; and Evan Bunch, a divinity student with Black Lives Matter Nashville.
- KBOO