DeAndre Harris, a young Black man, 20 years old, was brutally beaten by six white supremacists during the Charlottesville attacks in August. He is now being charged with felony charges of “unlawful wounding” by an accuser who Charlottesville police have yet to identify. The accuser, who is believed to be a member of a white supremacist group, is using this charge as a form of retaliation against DeAndre Harris. The accuser is saying that Harris instigated the fight. However, video footage clearly shows differently. Harris was actually attacked after police dispersed the August 12th white nationalist rally.
[embedyt] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KjI1N2NbXmU[/embedyt]
The white supremacist rally held in Charlottesville, Virginia in August is another painful and ugly stain in the U.S. It is a constant reminder that white violence and the vicious attacks on Black folks are seen as a common practice with no accountability. With a White House led by Trump and Sessions who promote and push an agenda that criminalizes and silences Black communities and communities of color, it’s no surprise right-wing, white supremacists are emboldened to act violently. When Trump referred to the attacks in Charlottesville, he said “there is blame on both sides”. By pressing charges against DeAndre Harris, the Commonwealth’s Attorney is both agreeing with and supporting Trump’s racist statements. The Commonwealth’s Attorney is choosing to blame and press charges against people on “both sides”. However, there is only one side that is guilty here– and that’s the white supremacists and klansmen who were in Charlottesville holding tiki torches, chanting racist antics, and running cars into crowds of people.
