In the United States of America, citizens are born with certain rights and freedoms. These rights are undeniable to all citizens, regardless of age or race. Recently, these rights were called into question by a band of white supremacists who organized a rally called ‘Unite the Right’. They vocalized their views of anti-semitism and acted violently towards some of the counter-protesters. Their views are offensive to many, and those slurs should not be allowed under the first amendment. Although they are permitted to chant their bigotry indirectly, they are still targeting members of a specific race and are inflicting harm upon that race. This is hate speech, plain and simple, and it is offending countless other people.

During the first ‘Unite the Right’ rally, the protesters were fighting to keep a statue of Robert E. Lee from being taken down. Robert E. Lee was the leader of the Confederate army and served as an emblem for white supremacy in some parts of the south.  “I don’t think it was right for them to try and take down the statue, even though what Robert E. Lee stood for was wrong and I disagree with what he stood for. I think that they should’ve gone about the protest in a totally different direction, with a peaceful protest, but it got out of hand,” junior Juliana Bonavita said. The city of Charlottesville wanted to take this statue down because it kept the town stuck in the past and away from more open-minded ideas. The rally began because of the statue, but as more people joined, the rally became less about the statue and more about expressing the Neo-Nazi and white supremacist speech. As the number of counter-protesters grew, the more vulgar and violent the protesters became. They started to threaten and insult the counter-protesters directly, and the police had to interfere because of fights that arose between the two parties. Things escalated when a white supremacist plowed into a crowd with his car, killing a woman that was peacefully counter-protesting and injuring many others. This rally was no longer peaceful, and it damaged the lives of many people. Their own ideas not only induced the violence and hatred but also brought back problems that we had resolved so long ago.

Although some people might argue that they are simply using their freedom of speech, what they might not know is that there are guidelines for what you can and cannot say. Many of the Neo-nazis address the counter-protesters and threaten them directly, which is considered hate speech and is not protected by the first amendment. However, the chants such as “blood and soil”, which are not directed towards specific people, are protected, despite the racist meanings their chants may have. Even though those words are indirect, they do hurt people because they are a reminder of the oppression many minorities faced, and bringing those slurs back are a step in the wrong direction for America as a whole. “Derogatory language towards Jews should obviously be considered hate speech because a person’s right to speak their mind stops when it prevents others from attaining the same rights. When they speak like that about Jews or any other minority, it should be considered hate speech and it should be somehow prevented by law enforcement or should be punished severely because of what level it could get to,” junior Christopher Brazda said. If regulations are changed and the racist sayings are no longer protected, bigotry will be discouraged throughout the country and these outdated views will no longer be tolerated.

White nationalists and other hate groups have been taking advantage of the freedom of speech, and are using it to spread their hateful and oppressive views. They are offending and harming many people because they are cherishing the enslavement and slaughter of certain minorities that occurred in the past. These events were traumatic for the oppressed, and bringing them back as a good example is shocking and disrespectful. The United States has been trying to push past the struggles in our history, and spreading racism is not going to help us move forward. Their slurs and chants should be considered hate speech, and should not be protected by the Constitution.

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