STOKES: The University owed its community a condemnation of the Capitol insurrection
Less than four years ago, white supremacists and neo-Nazis converged on Charlottesville in what would become the most grotesque exhibition of far-right prejudice and bigotry in recent memory. The terror of Aug. 11 and 12, 2017 resurfaced Jan. 6 with immeasurable intensity as thousands of pro-Trump rioters stormed the nation’s Capitol in a baseless attempt to overturn the results of the 2020 election. Frighteningly similar to the violence of the 2017 Unite the Right rally, the events of Jan. 6 have once again turned national attention towards Charlottesville — the community cited as the inspiration for a presidential campaign, yet nonetheless deemed unworthy of a presidential visit. Perhaps reflecting such dismissive attitudes, in a moment demanding strong condemnation, the University community was met with a disturbingly weak response from its leadership — a response that, for many, borders on silence.