Counterprotesters started lining up in Lafayette Square in Washington, D.C. near the White House Saturday evening, ahead of the Unite the Right 2 white nationalist rally that is scheduled to be held in the area on Sunday.
The Unite the Right rally on Aug. 12, 2017 was organized to protest the removal of a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee. Counterprotester Heather Heyer was killed after a self-identified neo-Nazi drove a vehicle into a crowd. Virginia State Police Troopers Lt. H. Jay Cullen III and Trooper-Pilot Berke M.M. Bates were also killed in a helicopter crash while policing the event.
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Jason Kessler, who organized the first rally, has also organized the Unite the Right 2 protest for Sunday evening, prompting counterprotesters to stake out spots on Saturday night with signs condemning hate and urging President Trump to step down.
“Hate has no home here,” a sign reads, according to NBC4 News.
“Hate does not make America great. #resignnow,” another one sign says.
Live at 6: latest on what to expect as the Unite the Right rally comes to DC. Group of counter demonstrators already in place at Lafayette Square. https://t.co/qw5tiFfz9B pic.twitter.com/OtLAsTjwdb
— Darcy Spencer (@darcyspencer) August 11, 2018
States of emergency have been declared for Virginia and the City of Charlottesville from Aug. 10-12, since multiple events will be held to commemorate the first anniversary of the original Unite the Right rally.
Rally organizers for United the Right 2 project that several hundred people will participate in this year’s event in D.C.
