The Brotherhood That Isn't

Sheet music cover to a popular song, 1923 Today we remember, reflect, and reckon – nine years after Unite the Right. August 11, 2017 – Charlottesville, Virginia In the sunlight, the young white men gather. They carry and wear powerful symbols of hate, old and new. The Confederate battle flag. The Nazi swastika. The Klan’s “Blood Drop Cross.” Thor’s hammer. An eagle carrying a fasces. And various other icons and brands adopted by neo-Nazis, neo-Confederates, and other white supremacy groups. Some of the men are dressed to fight. Taped hands. Helmets. Shields. Some carry guns, clubs, pepper spray, or other weapons. But as these men come together, they chat in small groups. They are relaxed. Smiling. Laughing. There is a sense of brotherhood – the feel of a family picnic, with a cosplay theme. 1 Then darkness falls. The white men march, torches held high. “You will not replace us! You will NOT replace us! … JEWS will NOT replace us!” They march across the University of Virginia campus, toward St. Paul’s Memorial Episcopal church, where ministers and anti-racist activists from across the country join in an interfaith worship service. Inside, Rev. Traci Blackmon stands at the pulpit. She is a Black pastor in Florissant, Missouri, and the Executive Minister of Justice and Witness at the national United Church of Christ. 2 Blackmon’s voice shakes the room: As a little girl in Birmingham, Alabama, I can still remember standing on the street, on the sidewalk, and watching the Klan rally go by. I can still remember the flags – the American flag being one of them – and the hoods, passing me by. I can STILL see it in my mind’s eye! And here I am at 54 years old – coming back because the Klan is still rising. 3 As the torch-bearing marchers approach, the church goes on lockdown. But, just outside, a few anti-racist activists are surrounded. The police arrive on the scene, but watch from the sidelines. 4 “White Lives Matter! White Lives Matter!” “Where are all your friends at, bitch? Where are all your friends at, bitch?” “We outnumber you.” 5 Later, activist Emily Gorcenski recalled: I got punched. I got kicked. I remember getting hit in the head. I thought it was with a torch. I stepped forward at one point and got shoved back. I thought I was going to die. … It was like a hundred people beating up a small group of [10 to 15] of us. You could feel how angry they were, but also how happy they were to be doing this. To be intimidating people like this – and this happy rage. 6 The next morning, as the white men return to their crime scene, they are greeted by chanting anti-racist protestors: “No hate! No fear! White supremacists aren’t welcome here! No hate! No fear! …” A line of men armed with shields and clubs shoves straight into the protesters. Some of them fight back, but police arrest no one. The violence escalates. 7 White supremacists corner protestor DeAndre Harris in a parking garage, and beat him with poles, metal pipes, and wooden boards. Police standing nearby do not intervene. Most of the anti-racist protestors are non-violent. But some have come to fight. Then, at 1:45 p.m., self-proclaimed Hitler admirer James Alex Fields slams his gray Dodge Challenger directly into a crowd of protestors, critically injuring five people, hospitalizing 20, and killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer, who felt that she “had to go” protest after seeing footage of the torch-carrying mob the night before. 8 The Aftermath Later that day, President Trump spoke to the press about the events in Charlottesville: We condemn in the strongest possible terms this egregious display of hatred, bigotry, and violence – on many sides. On many sides. … We have to come together as Americans with love for our nation and – really, I say this so strongly – true affection for each other. … I want to salute the great work of the state and local police in Virginia. Incredible people – law enforcement. Incredible people. And also the National Guard. They’ve really been working smart and working hard. They’ve been doing a terrific job. … We must love each other, respect each other, and cherish our history and our future together. 9 A few days later, Trump doubled down, asserting “you had very fine people on both sides.” 10 White supremacist leaders, including former KKK Grand Wizard David Duke, praised the President’s words: “Thank you President Trump for your honesty & courage to tell the truth about #Charlottesville & condemn the leftist terrorists in BLM/Antifa.” 11 Why Did It Happen? White racial grievance led to Charlottesville. False stories about Black and brown people have spread terror across the globe. That immigrants will “replace” white folks. That “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” programs unfairly create advantages for minorities. That any policy measure that attempts to correct past and ongoing racial harms by recognizing racial difference is itself “racist.” Ironically, these racial fears often bring white people together in ways that masquerade as genuine connection, as the “brotherhood” of white men in Charlottesville displayed while gathering in the sunlight nine years ago. These white siloes act like sports fans on steroids – creating what activist and writer Marika Heinrichs calls “conditional belonging.” 12 But, as many of President Trump’s former supporters and employees have learned over the years, the moment that members of such “in groups” fail to demonstrate unrestrained, unequivocal loyalty, they are shunned. The Racial Landscape Nine Years Later Nine years later, what has changed? Now that’s a truly scary story. First, after Charlottesville, racial grievance has wrought much more violence. Since August 2017, at least seven mass shooters around the world have been motivated by white supremacy, 13 while one mass shooter may have been motivated by “leftist” politics. 14 But even more alarmingly, today racial grievance has found its way back to the front and center of legal policy and state-sanctioned violence. The most visible and violent of these changes has been immigration policy. During President Trump’s second term, the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE) has undergone a multi-billion dollar expansion. And guess who’s being targeted in the agency’s recruiting efforts? 15 Now, those who share the racial grievances of the young white men who formerly took refuge in marginalized white supremacist groups can instead find conditional belonging as armed federal agents, charged with kicking Black and brown people out of our country. Predictably, the results of such recruitment have been brutal. They wear masks and no uniforms. They roam the streets in unmarked cars. As Harris County, Texas District Attorney Sean Teare put it, “It appears, from everything we’ve seen, that either these agents are completely untrained, or intentionally putting themselves in situations where they can justify firing into cars.” 16 Federal immigration officers have killed at least 11 people during Trump’s second term. 17 Meanwhile, the United States Supreme Court’s recent decisions on race have not only severely limited the Voting Rights Act, but have more broadly signaled that invoking race in the name of correcting past or ongoing racism violates the law – a policy I call “weaponized color blindness.” 18 Indeed, the Court claims that correcting against white supremacy violates the Fourteenth Amendment and the Civil Rights Act of 1866, both of which were enacted after the Civil War specifically to protect Black people. 19 Reckoning With Our Racist Past Of course, white grievance is nothing new. It has led to racial violence throughout our nation’s history. As Faulkner put it, “The past is never dead. It’s not even past.” 20 After the Civil War, whites in the South had to live in a new world, where Black people were free and labor was not. An economy built on slavery collapsed. And racial grievance first ignited violence – the birth of the Ku Klux Klan and thousands of lynchings across decades – then led to legal policy changes resulting in Jim Crow, redlining, and ultimately today’s system of mass incarceration. I have found dramatic illustrations of white racial grievance in my own family history. In 1861, my third-great grandfather, Charles Arden Russell helped the Knights of the Golden Circle burn down a San Antonio newspaper and chase its publisher out of the country. They attacked because the paper had dared to criticize the group’s pro-slavery goals of invading Mexico, creating a new nation-state, and cornering the cotton market. 21 Similarly, after the war, Charley lost his county judge position when the Union Army took over state government in Texas during Reconstruction. In response, he penned a lengthy poem called “The Scallawag,” excoriating the white southerners who supported freed Black folks, as “negro-loving Scallawags!” 22 We cannot heal without first knowing and understanding the truth about this past. But now, rather than facing the historical roots of today’s racial hatred, our federal government actively runs away from it. For example, we’ve watched the Trump Administration whitewash the wound by requiring the Smithsonian Institution to review its content and remove “divisive narratives.” According to the current President, the Smithsonian has focused too much on “how bad slavery was.” 23 White “Allies” Must Not Continue To Be the Weak Link Scary as these post-Charlottesville stories are, we must carry hope going forward. We cannot be paralyzed by the existential dread brought on by today’s headlines. Nor should we be content to shake our heads at that news and pat ourselves on the back for not being “one of them.” Fixing racial harms is white people’s work and responsibility. Don’t get me wrong – none of us should feel guilt or shame for what our racist ancestors did and created. We didn’t make their choices. But, we inherited not only their DNA, but also their stories. Including the false, toxic stories of race and white superiority. And, white folks in this country continue to benefit from systems of law, housing, education, and economics, which our ancestors helped build – and which give advantages to white folks while harming People of Color. True healing and racial repair require that us white folks do something different. That we break the historical patterns that have established white allies as the weak link limiting racial progress. 24 That we heal the trauma of this country’s racial history that has buried itself in every type of American body – Black bodies, brown bodies, white bodies, and police bodies alike. 25 That we create a culture around anti-racism work and build relationships with communities of color and groups led by People of Color. That we find joy in that work and each other while we do it. That the work becomes embedded in our way of life, rather than being a short-term passion project that leads inevitably to burnout. We can do this. The work is hard, but also both joyful and transformational. Shaking your head and lamenting the evils of those “other white people” is not going to cut it. It never has. Please subscribe to follow the arc: truth → healing → transformation & repair. 1 For a glimpse of this vibe, I recommend peeking at the “Behind the scenes footage of ‘Unite the Right’ white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, VA,” by The Red “The Red Loon Mage.” https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQFwWZ08WvtAJIGjdcyEt7lDY6b01fOUK (accessed August 10, 2026). 2 Blackmon would later become the UCC Associate General Minister of Justice and Local Church Ministries, before leaving the UCC in 2023. She is a founder of The Prophetic Convening, a gathering of Black Christian leaders committed to justice. https://www.thepropheticconvening.com/ 3 “See the Sparks that Set Off Violence in Charlottesville,” National Geographic YouTube channel (Aug. 19, 2017) at 3:57 (accessed Aug. 8, 2026). 4 A.C. Thompson, “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville,” PBS Frontline (Aug. 12, 2019) at 5:44 (accessed Aug. 9, 2026). 5 “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville” at 6:08. 6 “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville,” at 6:20. 7 “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville,” at 9:13. 8 “Documenting Hate: Charlottesville,” at 11:12. 9 “President Trump’s FULL Statement on Charlottesville, VA “Unite the Right” Rally and Protests 8/12/17” (accessed August 10, 2026). 10 President Donald Trump press conference of August 15, 2017 (accessed August 10, 2026). 11 Elizabeth Chuck, “White Nationalists Praise Trump as ‘Most Honest President Since Washington,’” NBC News (Aug. 17, 2017) https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/white-nationalists-praise-trump-most-honest-president-washington-n793171 (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). 12 Feet in the Butter On white people building belonging together inside movements for liberation Note: This writing was previously published on my website in September, 2021… Read more a year ago · Marika Heinrichs 13 Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh in October 2018. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pittsburgh_synagogue_shooting (accessed Aug. 10, 2026) Mosque and Islamic Center in Christchurch, New Zealand in March 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christchurch_mosque_shootings (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). Chabad of Poway synagogue in San Diego, on April 27, 2019 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Poway_synagogue_shooting (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). El Paso Walmart in August 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_El_Paso_Walmart_shooting (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). Al-Noor Islamic Centre in Bærum, Norway in August 2019 (although the shooter in this case killed only his own sister, because the mosque was nearly empty when he opened fire). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_B%C3%A6rum_murder_and_mosque_attack (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). Synagogue and kebab shop in Halle, Germany, October 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Halle_synagogue_shooting#cite_note-36 (accessed Aug. 10, 2026) Tops Friendly Supermarket in Buffalo, New York, in May 2022. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2022_Buffalo_shooting (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). 14 Ned Peppers Bar in Dayton, Ohio in August 2019. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019_Dayton_shooting (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). 15 Matt Pearson, “How are ICE Agents Recruited, and Who Are They?” DW (Jan. 17, 2026) https://www.dw.com/en/how-are-ice-agents-recruited-and-who-are-they/a-75506003 (accessed August 10, 2026). 16 “Why so many fatal ICE shootings have happened during Trump’s second term,” CBS News (July 14, 2026) https://www.cbsnews.com/video/why-many-fatal-ice-shootings-pened-trumps-second-term/ (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). 17 Id. 18 19 20 William Faulkner, Requiem for a Nun (1951) at 73. 21 22 https://healingwhitehistory.substack.com/p/white-foxes-in-black-robes-racial?r=e2z7c 23 Zolan Kanno-Youngs, “Trump says Smithsonian Focuses Too Much on ‘How Bad Slavery Was’” New York Times (Aug. 19, 2025) https://www.nytimes.com/2025/08/19/us/politics/trump-smithsonian-slavery.html (accessed Aug. 10, 2026). 24 25