Essex County Rallies Decry Charlottesville Tragedy, 'White Nationalism'

ESSEX COUNTY, NJ — As the people of Charlottesville, Virginia, continue to grieve and strive to cope with the traumatic events of the weekend, a rallying call to stand up to bigotry is trumpeting across the nation, including Essex County, New Jersey.

Over the weekend in Essex County, rallies against white nationalism and racism took place in Brookdale Park, Newark and Maplewood after a man reported to have Nazi views allegedly drove into a crowd of protesters in Charlottesville on Saturday, killing a 32-year-old woman and injuring at least 19 others.

The incident was the culmination of hours of violent clashes between neo-Nazis, members of the alt-right, white nationalists and counter-protesters at the site of a rally staged to oppose the removal of a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee.

• See related article: Violence, Fury And Flames: Charlottesville Timeline
• See related article: Trump Blames 'Many Sides' For Deaths, Violence, At Charlottesville White Nationalist Rally

In Brookdale Park, located in Montclair and Bloomfield, hundreds of people gathered for a candlelight vigil on Sunday, including Democratic congressional candidate Mikie Sherrill.

“The hate, vitriol, and racism in Charlottesville is unacceptable,” Sherrill stated on Facebook. “There is no place for racial violence in a country that truly values freedom. Not here, not now. My grandfather, who was shot down over Nazi-occupied France, fought for the freedom of all when he served his country in WWII, and I took an oath to serve for those same values. No one can live freely where such fear and hate is allowed to take root. We must stand up to it.”

“The real heroes of Charlottesville were the peaceful activists who went out to stand up against hate,” stated BlueWaveNJ, which supported the Brookdale Park rally.

“They showed up to defend what truly makes America great,” BlueWave stated. “We deeply mourn for the family of the young woman who was brutally murdered standing up for what she believed in. We cannot be silent in the face of such bigotry and hatred.”

The group that spearheaded the Brookdale Park rally – NJ 11th For Change – took a dig at U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, who represents several towns in Essex County, for allegedly not making any statement condemning the tragedy.

However, Frelinghuysen issued the following statement to Patch on Monday about the tragedy:

"The hatred and violence by white supremacists in Charlottesville must be condemned. There is no comparison between those on the side of bigotry and hate, and those who manned the barriers to protest them. The views and actions of white supremacists have no place in America."

NEWARK

On Sunday in Newark, organizers with the People’s Organization for Progress joined community members to hold an emergency rally to “condemn the racist attack that took place in Charlottesville.”

“The people of Newark stand in solidarity with the People’s Organization for Progress (POP) and all Americans concerned about the future of our democracy,” said Mayor Ras Baraka, who was in attendance at the rally. “We abhor the racist violence that has terrorized millions in this country for centuries.”

Watch Baraka speak at the rally here.

Cardinal Joseph Tobin, Archbishop of Newark, issued the following statement about Charlottesville on Monday:

"The one and a half million Catholic men, women and children of the Archdiocese of Newark – people who trace their roots to every continent of the world and represent every race and ethnicity – view with horror the recent events in Charlottesville and condemn the racism and vicious rhetoric that contributed to this tragic moment in our nation’s history. We stand in prayer and solidarity with all people of good will and we witness to our Christian calling to “love your enemies…that you may be children of your heavenly Father."

Tobin continued:

"In the wake of her daughter’s brutal death, the mother of Heather Heyer told reporters in Charlottesville that 'hate cannot fix the world. Hate only creates more hate.' We join her in rejecting the brutality that killed her child, contributed to the deaths of two Virginia State Troopers and left dozens injured. While we denounce such violence, we also call for a thorough examination of racial bigotry and intolerance in the light of reason and love. 'For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come toward the light, so that his works might not be exposed.' Dark words and deeds must be met with light and love."

MAPLEWOOD

A third Essex County anti-hate rally took place in Maplewood’s Ricalton Square, where hundreds – including families with children – gathered for a march and candlelight vigil.

Volunteers from SOMA Justice, which organized Sunday’s rally, wrote that they “mourn for lives that was lost, and will honor all those under attack by congregating against hate in our own communities.”

Organizers wrote:

"This weekend, hate groups and domestic terrorists of all stripes went to Charlottesville, Va., to push their violent, hateful message of white supremacy, fascism, anti-Semitism and bigotry.When they got there they waged violence on unarmed anti-racists, killing one and injuring many others. Two state troupers were also killed in a helicopter crash during the violence. We mourn for lives that was lost, and we will honor all those under attack by congregating against hate in our own communities."

“We are here today to stand in solidarity with the citizens of Charlottesville, Virginia, and the victims of the horrific, violent, racist, anti-Semitic, bigoted crimes that were committed this weekend,” Maplewood resident Marian Raab told NorthJersey.com.

Do you have something to say about the events that took place in Charlottesville last weekend? Send a letter to the editor to Eric.Kiefer@Patch.com (include your full name and town of residence).

Send local news tips, photos and press releases to eric.kiefer@patch.com

Photo 1: City of Newark, Twitter

Photo 2: NJ 11th For Change, Facebook