Vladimir Abarinov: "Statue of the commander"

“The riots in Charlottesville have a deep and multi-layered background and are very similar to a provocation. At first glance, everything is simple: the city authorities decided to demolish the statue of General Lee as a symbol of racism, but neo-Nazis came to the city - they committed a massacre, attacking counter-protesters. But this is a superficial description of what happened,” the journalist writes in a column on the Grani.ru website.

“The leaders of the neo-Nazis are well known. First of all, Jason Kessler is a 34-year-old resident of Charlottesville, blogger and leader of the Unity and Security for America organization, which, in his words, defends Western civilization. He declared a personal vendetta against Vice Mayor Wes Bellamy, accusing him in corruption and embezzlement. It is Kessler who is listed as the organizer of neo-Nazi actions in Charlottesville and the filer of lawsuits against the decisions of the city authorities. But there is a feeling that he is simply an executor, if you will - the chairman.

A much more interesting character is Richard Spencer, publisher and president of the National Policy Institute in Washington. He has already come to the attention of the Russian-language press. They noted, in particular, his like-mindedness with the “chief strategist” of the White House, Steve Bannon, and the fact that his ex-wife Nina Kupriyanova translated the works of Alexander Dugin into English. She is not only a translator, but also, by her own definition, an “independent political analyst.”

"Richard Spencer leads to another adviser to the president, Stephen Miller. Spencer and Miller are classmates, both studied at Duke University. When Donald Trump appointed Miller as his adviser, Spencer welcomed the appointment. And although Miller is Jewish, he fully lived up to expectations neo-Nazis. It was he who was the author of Trump’s decree banning the entry of citizens of Muslim countries into the United States, which was overturned by several courts. It was Miller who recently presented to journalists a new immigration law that significantly limits legal immigration.”

“Is it any wonder in these circumstances that Donald Trump, while condemning the violence in Charlottesville, did not call a spade a spade? As former Ku Klux Klan leader David Duke, who arrived at the rally, said when addressing the president: “I would recommend that you take a close look look in the mirror and remember that it was white Americans, not radical leftists, who made you president." According to Duke, it is he and his supporters who are engaged in fulfilling Trump's campaign promises."