Corey Long Did Nothing Wrong
Here’s what’s at stake in Corey’s Case — Tuesday April 17 #DropEmCville
It was August 12, 2018 and hundreds of white nationalist fascists descended upon downtown Charlottesville in an attack they named Unite the Right. Many of the fascists carried guns, shields, and other weapons, and were covered in racist symbols. Hundreds of Charlottesville community members and our supporters had also come downtown, to counter-protest, to hold space for racial justice, to defend Cville. Corey Long, a young Black Charlottesville community member, came with a group of friends. (His group of friends, by the way, also included DeAndre Harris).
As Corey said in an interview with The Root: “I went out to voice my opinion. To have my freedom of speech. Just like the racist Nazis who took over my town.”
Corey Long did nothing wrong.
Reports say that a white supremacist named Richard Preston pointed a gun at Corey and shot at him twice.
This is the only known instance of a gun being fired that day.
Let’s repeat: A white supremacist is said to have pointed a gun at Corey and pulled the trigger. Twice.
Richard Preston, 52, is a Confederate White Knights of the KKK imperial wizard from Baltimore. On December 18, Preston was indicted on charges of shooting a firearm within 1,000 feet of a school.
Corey said that it was after Preston shot at him that Corey picked up a spray can nearby — which had been thrown at him by the white nationalist invaders.
That’s right before the moment that became a viral image, of Corey’s body positioned in front of a small old man, as a flame wards off a group of white supremacists.
This happened in Charlottesville. This happened in our community. We are all responsible.
Corey Long did nothing wrong.
This is a known Nazi tactic.
The white nationalists invaded Charlottesville with the intention of starting trouble and provoking a response with the goal of doing exactly what they have done to Corey — getting criminal charges against Black community members and other anti-racist counter-protestors. And the police cooperated: more counter-protesters were arrested than White Supremacists.
Nazis wrote about this tactic on their message boards ahead of the Unite the Right attack on Charlottesville. They teach each other how to use this tactic. They have lawyers who are practiced in it. They’ve used it in other communities as well. Racists have used this tactic against protestors of the Civil Rights era and probably long before that too. They will use it in more communities if we don’t stop it here. What happens here will reverberate in other places. There will be echoes. There already are.
These charges are one of the many ways white nationalist fascists continue to terrorize Black communities in Charlottesville and nationwide. They are using the court system. Kops and Klan go hand in hand. Criminalization is White Supremacy.
As reported by the New York Times: “Mr. Long claimed on Friday that his arrest was retaliation and that the police were “in the pocket” of white supremacists.”
Corey Long did nothing wrong.
The presence of community counter-protestors has been essential in Charlottesville and across the country in “no platforming,” or refusing to let our community provide a platform for white nationalists to spread their message and build power. Politeness, civility, and Southern hospitality itself are all covers for white supremacist oppression.
We will not choose civility over safety and justice.
We will not let our communities provide a platform for white nationalists — in the streets or in the courts.
Essence reported that Corey posted after his arrest: “Getting arrested is no dishonor if you are standing up against hatred and injustice… Getting shot while on the battlefield is sometimes a necessary reality if you are a true soldier operating against enemy fire in enemy territory.”
Corey Long did nothing wrong.
We must show up for Corey together as a continuation of the community care and community defense work that we have been doing here in so many different ways. We must show up for Corey together because we understand the necessity of counter protesting Nazis. We must show up for Corey because we refuse to let our community be further used by Nazis to terrorize Black people.
Corey Long did nothing wrong. What will you do?
Tell Commonwealth Attorney Joe Platania to DROP THE CHARGES against Corey Long.
Show up at Charlottesville General District Court at 10:00am on Tuesday, April 17 to attend Corey Long’s trial. The case may be decided that day. We need you there.
