Czech Republic: Assembly to honor the victim of the neo-Nazi terror attack in the USA

About 100 people assembled on Monday evening near a small monument to those who fell during the liberation of Prague at the end of WWII in order to honor the memory of 32-year-old minority rights defender Heather Heyer, who died after being hit by a car driven by a neo-Nazi during Saturday’s protest in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA. James Alex Fields, age 20, drove the vehicle and has been charged with murdering Heyer and injuring 19 other people.

Speakers warned against the growth in extremism and populism and called for solidarity and for fascism to be combated. They also said it is not possible to be indifferent to displays of racism, Islamophobia and homophobia, which currently are on the rise under the pretext of patriotism and nationalism.

Those speaking also emphasized that there have recently been several similar attacks using vehicles and that when the perpetrators are dark-skinned, such incidents are strongly publicized by the mainstream media in the Czech Republic. They speculated that if a Muslim had committed this murder, the crime would be much more broadly condemned than is currently the case.

Speakers also emphasized that this murderous terrorist attack is really the last straw when it comes to displays of hatred by racists and that it is necessary to stand firm against them. After roughly 45 minutes those in attendance dispersed peacefully.