Hundreds of people returned to the University of Virginia campus for a vigil on Wednesday night against hate and violence. It was reported that the marchers walked the same grounds that self-proclaimed white nationalists and Nazis walked on Friday night when they clashed with counter-protesters. Other vigils have sprung up nationwide such as in Minnesota, Virginia, and in Washington D.C. right outside of the White House.

Before the violence broke out in Charlottesville last Saturday, the same white supremacists who were there on Friday got a preview of what was to come when they clashed with counter-protesters at the foot of the Confederate monument Friday night.

Tyler D.R. Magill (who is an employee of the university) was heard yelling at "Unite the Right" Rally organizer Jason Kessler that "her name was Heather, Jason," -- referring to Heather Heyer who was killed by a white nationalist that drove his car through a crowd of counter-protesters on Saturday, injuring 19.

Kessler was trying to make a speech in the area but was chased off. Mr. Magill followed him until Kessler was escorted out by police. But Magill was also attacked by white supremacists who used their torch as a weapon. Magill checked into the hospital on Monday and it was reported that he suffered a stroke as a result of the attack. An artery in his neck had apparently been "dissected" which cause a clot to form, leading to the stroke.

Richard Spencer's Tiki-torch bearers

In an article titled: "Fire and Fury: Unite the Right torch rally ends in violence at the Rotunda" published by the Daily Progress, it reported that the rally on Friday night was an echo of the one that took place on the same campus on May 13 that included white nationalist Richard Spencer.

At the time, it was reported that Spencer's group of protesters were in the dozens. The police arrived and were able to disperse the crowd that was building up before there were any incidents. Just as they did on Friday, the torch-bearing nationalists chanted back in May that Russia was their friend, "blood and soil," and "Jews will not replace us."

The gathering of racist hate groups on Friday was larger, and, like the protest in May, those self-proclaimed white nationalists were carrying torches.

The protests followed a vote by the Charlottesville City Council who voted to get rid of the Confederate statue of Gen. Robert E. Lee. This time, Richard Spencer's group clashed with more counter-protesters at the foot of the statue, with torch-carrying protesters said to be in the hundreds. It would appear that the group simply could not wait to rally for their cause on Saturday. Late night comedians made jokes about the protesters, saying that it looked as though they raided a Pier One store for the torches. The Tiki torch company released a statement saying that they did not condone the use of their products for such a cause.

Logistics of violent rally

On Saturday, the Daily Progress report said that police declared the assembly of these racist hate groups as unlawful.

Footage showed law enforcement pushing the hate groups out of the park before fights with counter-protesters began to break out at the foot of a Thomas Jefferson statue. Some of those who were bearing torches reportedly swung them at protesters, resulting in one arrest and several others being treated for minor injuries -- Tyler Magill being the exception.

It was initially reported that there were 1,000 first responders and local law enforcement provided for the rally with the Virginia National Guard being on standby. The city said that they estimated that there would be 2,000 to 6,000 people in attendance. The article initially said that the city made efforts to try and move the rally to McIntire Park.

But due to a federal judge's ruling, it was Emancipation Park instead.

Reports of lapse security

Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe said that they had "learned" the lessons from previous rallies held by white supremacists and that they were going to deal with the Saturday rally differently. On July 8, a group that calls itself the Loyal White Knights of the Ku Klux Klan held a rally in the same area where they too were confronted by 1,000 counter-protesters. They were reportedly escorted by police officers in riot gear.

One anonymous contributor said on the anarchist site It's Going Down that Christopher Cantrell -- who they identified as a white nationalist speaker for the Unite the Right event -- pulled a gun on a customer at a local Walmart that day.

It was reported that officers did indeed step in but rather than make an arrest, they were allowed to attend the event. It should be noted that Mr. Magill expressed disappointment over the fact that law enforcement did little to protect marchers from the attack.
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