On Saturday, Charlottesville, Virginia officials declared a state of emergency around 11 a.m., after hundreds of White nationalists and counter-protesters clashed over a recent decision to remove the city’s statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee.
While injuries reported were mainly scrapes and bruises, as people dispersed, a car plowed into a crowd near the city’s downtown mall, killing a 32-year-old woman. Some 34 others were injured, at least 19 in the car crash, according to a spokeswoman for the University of Virginia Medical Center, The Washington Post reports. Sadly, video footage of the incident suggests the rundown may have been intentional.
Although police apprehended the driver after he fled the scene, the aftermath continues as Americans across the nation are pouring their hearts out over the tragic state of our nation on social media. See what some celebrities had to say about the situation:
I pray a true leader will rise to expel hatred from America. This is not US! This is Anti-American #ThisIsNotUS #Charlottesville #BeKind
— xoxo, Gaga (@ladygaga) August 12, 2017
I know we are not created to hate each other, but to help & love. Use hashtag #BeKind #ThisIsNotUS to tweet positive messages. #Charlotte
— xoxo, Gaga (@ladygaga) August 12, 2017
Zendaya later took to Instagram to comment on the violence and chemical sprays used during the protest, calling the event “terrorism.”
“I really don’t know what to say…but this is terrorism,” she captioned a video of the rally. “This is America TODAY…not 40 years ago, and your president is silent. Disgusting.”
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXtFMTchdqn/
Meanwhile, Donald Trump later took to Twitter with a vague response: “We ALL must be united & condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Lets come together as one!”
We ALL must be united & condemn all that hate stands for. There is no place for this kind of violence in America. Lets come together as one!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 12, 2017
For more celebrity reactions, keep scrolling…
https://www.instagram.com/p/BXsv_PfFNwU/
“The truth is: we are living at this time. And we are tolerating it.” #Charlottesville pic.twitter.com/U4qBQl93qV
— Ava DuVernay (@ava) August 12, 2017
How tragic that this is what we’ve come to. My prayers are w those in Charlottesville & every American who is the target of hate & violence.
— Kim Kardashian West (@KimKardashian) August 12, 2017
Hell of a day for the President to forget how to tweet. pic.twitter.com/ABffmwwH8D
— J.K. Rowling (@jk_rowling) August 12, 2017
My heart is in Charlottesville today, and with everyone made to feel unsafe in their country.
— Hillary Clinton (@HillaryClinton) August 12, 2017
Even as we protect free speech and assembly, we must condemn hatred, violence and white supremacy. #Charlottesville
— Bill Clinton (@billclinton) August 12, 2017
Though shocking, many would admit that we’ve been headed in this direction for quite some time. As actor Kumail Nanjiani put it, “It’s getting harder and harder to explain to my mom that everything is going to be ok.”
