IndexStock StoryHidden HistoryHistory of ResistanceIn August 2017, groups of free speech protesters took to the streets of Virginia to protest the removal of the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. These protesters were met with confrontation by groups of counter-protesters upset by the previous groups' use of Confederate and Nazi flags. It quickly became apparent that the so-called Unite the Right rally was not simply a way for conservatives to come together, but also a way to make white supremacists, neo-Nazis and Ku Klux Klan members listen. Shock and fear spread across the country as mostly white men took to the streets with tiki torches and chants of “Jews will not replace us.” However, people of color living in Charlottesville, Virginia, said that this event did not surprise or scare them: Only those who were not paying attention, a local business owner said, would be afraid, because racism and white supremacists have been ever-present citizens of Virginia and the United States since the birth of the country (Reeves, 2017). While the media focused on President Trump's lackluster and contradictory statements following the event, citizens stepped up and spoke out against the hatred and bigotry displayed in Virginia (Almasy, 2017; Manchester, 2017). The dominant narrative perpetrated by the media has focused on President Trump, hiding how racism is ingrained in US culture. While well-known members of political parties continue to use Twitter, protesters fighting for free speech and counter-protesters fighting for an end to racism and bigotry continue to take to the streets. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original EssayStock StoryThe stock story, or dominant narrative, in media coverage of the Unite the Right-turned-white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, the weekend of August 12, 2017 focuses on criticism of President Trump's comments regarding the protests and counter-protests. The demonstration was billed as a protest against the removal of the statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee. When protesters arrived on the University of Virginia campus, they arrived with torches, weapons such as sticks, and bigoted chants, including “you will not replace us,” “Jews will not replace us,” “blood and soil,” and “White Lives Matter ” (Reeves, 2017). Via Twitter and in press conferences following the demonstration that cost the life of counter-protester Heather Heyer, President Trump made a series of controversial comments (Almasy, 2017). Trump said there was “blame on both sides” for the violence in Virginia and that not all of the protesters were neo-Nazis or white supremacists, referring to news reports that covered the story as fake news. He used slippery slope fallacies, or suggesting that a small first event will lead to more significant and more unlikely events, questioning whether the United States will soon tear down statues of George Washington and Thomas Jefferson because they were slave owners (Walton, 1992; "Transcript complete and video: Trump press conference in New York", 2017). An assortment of public figures have spoken out against Trump's backhanded comments and belated renouncement of racism and bigotry in the United States, including celebrities such as writer JK Rowling, who called Trump's speech an "abomination," actress Mandy Moore who asked "How is this man our president?", and documentary filmmaker Michael Moorewho disagreed with Trump's comparison of George Washington to Robert E. Lee as seen in Vanity (Rubin, 2017). Prominent members of the Republican Party are also speaking out against President Trump, attempting to create a distinction between the Republican Party and the Trump administration and presidency. For example, House Speaker Paul Ryan stated that “there can be no moral ambiguity” when it comes to racism and Senator Jeff Flake agreed that “we must condemn…white supremacy and acts of domestic terrorism” (Green, 2017) . Democratic party leaders agreed with the Republican party, telling the president that “there is a time to choose a side… There is a right side and an immoral side” (Clark 2017). Shanto Iyengar (n.d.) analyzes the US news cycle in their piece “Race in the News.” Before the 1920s, Americans received their news through newspapers. However, over the last century there has been a shift from print media to broadcast sources of information. Major networks in the 1980s created "all news" cable networks such as CNN, Fox News Channel, CNBC, and MSNBC. Therefore, in modern America, news is constantly flowing. Social media, such as Facebook and Twitter, add to this endless stream of news (Iyengar, n.d.). While there are many sources from which to get information, you still run the risk of internalizing bias in the news and becoming misinformed about the facts of a controversial event. White supremacy in the media, such as the tendency of television shows and movies to show criminals as black or immigrants and heroes as white, causes the general population to be unable to see the privilege they bring with them into life of everyday life until a major racist event occurs. as the white supremacist rally takes place in Virginia (McIntosh, 1992). Hidden history Despite the shock conveyed by the dominant narrative, people of color say this new manifestation of racism in the United States is not scary, but familiar. Black Virginia residents say they "always knew that people were capable" of the violence witnessed at the Unite the Right rally because they were raised by parents who participated in the civil rights movement and fought against the power of the Ku Klux Klan in the states of south. Charlottesville has a history of being the home of white supremacist leaders like the Ku Klux Klan and those who wanted to fight Supreme Court decisions like Brown v Board. The area's public schools were closed rather than integrated, and the area's affluent whites created their own private school system in response to Brown v Board (Newkirk, 2017). “It's no surprise… This is Charlottesville,” another resident lamented of the racism entrenched in her hometown (Reeves, 2017). In the United States the history of racism has been hidden from white people. However, people of color say they have understood the reality of prejudice in this country for as long as it has existed. In 1962, James Baldwin wrote to his grandson, “you were born where you were born and you faced the future you faced because you were black and for no other reason.” People of color in the United States can draw conclusions from the times of slavery to modern America to explain their misfortune and current oppression. From slavery, to Jim Crow, to mass incarceration, and the school-to-prison pipeline, communities of color have been and are institutionally oppressed (Alexander, 2010). However, if the media continues to follow President Trump's missteps instead of investigating the issues behind the recent white supremacist rally, the United States will not be able to make progress to.