The Charlottesville Syllabus

The Charlottesville Syllabus

Studying hate is critical to countering it.

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It was encouraging to read that tens of thousands of people rallied in cities across the United States yesterday to protest deadly violence by a mob of Ku Klux Klan members and neo-Nazis during a rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the day before. The far-right’s open bigotry, coupled with the violence, struck many as a dangerous inflection point. Racial violence has never not been a part of American history, but up until recently racism was seen as something to veil, to obscure.  Dog whistles were the thing. Now, everyone hears the sadistic sounds.

The good news is that there are still more of us than there are of them. Far more. My colleague Sarah Arnold has assembled a good list of ways you can stand in solidarity with the victims of this weekend’s violence. Sara Benincasa has a great post up detailing important groups on the ground that can really use our support.

The UVa Graduate Coalition also released an invaluable resource in response to the largest fascist gathering in the United States in recent memory: The Charlottesville Syllabus seeks to explore the local historical and contemporary precedents for this gathering, to give it history and context, to denounce it, and to amplify the voices of community members most affected by this “alt-right” occupation of space.

A new and ongoing project, the syllabus is meant to be expanded, revised, and copied. Featuring contemporary and archival primary and secondary sources (articles, books, responses, a documentary, databases, encyclopedia entries) and a list of terms for discussing white supremacy, the document should be useful to educators, parents, and anyone looking to better understand and explain the historical trends that have bought us to Charlottesville.

We cannot back down

We now confront a second Trump presidency.

There’s not a moment to lose. We must harness our fears, our grief, and yes, our anger, to resist the dangerous policies Donald Trump will unleash on our country. We rededicate ourselves to our role as journalists and writers of principle and conscience.

Today, we also steel ourselves for the fight ahead. It will demand a fearless spirit, an informed mind, wise analysis, and humane resistance. We face the enactment of Project 2025, a far-right supreme court, political authoritarianism, increasing inequality and record homelessness, a looming climate crisis, and conflicts abroad. The Nation will expose and propose, nurture investigative reporting, and stand together as a community to keep hope and possibility alive. The Nation’s work will continue—as it has in good and not-so-good times—to develop alternative ideas and visions, to deepen our mission of truth-telling and deep reporting, and to further solidarity in a nation divided.

Armed with a remarkable 160 years of bold, independent journalism, our mandate today remains the same as when abolitionists first founded The Nation—to uphold the principles of democracy and freedom, serve as a beacon through the darkest days of resistance, and to envision and struggle for a brighter future.

The day is dark, the forces arrayed are tenacious, but as the late Nation editorial board member Toni Morrison wrote “No! This is precisely the time when artists go to work. There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do language. That is how civilizations heal.”

I urge you to stand with The Nation and donate today.

Onwards,

Katrina vanden Heuvel
Editorial Director and Publisher, The Nation

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