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The racists marching in Tennessee don't matter, but the people standing against them do

Let's take some time to consider the heroes of this story.

Adam Rosenberg

on October 28, 2017

The racists marching in Tennessee don't matter, but the people standing against them do

SHELBYVILLE, TN - OCTOBER 28: Counter-protestors demonstrate during a White Lives Matter rally on October 28, 2017 in Shelbyville, Tennessee. Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam said state and local law enforcement officials would be out "in full force" for the two white nationalist rallies. The event billed as a White Lives Matter rally is hosted by Nationalist Front, which is a coalition of several white supremacist organizations. (Photo by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images) Credit: Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images

Oh. Look. The racists are marching again.

That was the plan, anyway. A small army (very small) of ignorant, irrationally angry humans had planned to march under the meaningless banner of "White Lives Matter" in two Tennessee cities on Saturday. And while some did indeed show up, they were vastly outnumbered.

A planned rally in Shelbyville drew roughly 200 "white nationalists" (i.e. racists) while another rally, in Murfreesboro, fizzled almost immediately when around 15 of the hatemongers dared to show their faces (according to USA Today). In both cases, the racists were outnumbered.

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You've probably seen them characterized as counter-protesters, but I'd argue there's a better word for these people who are willing to stand up and face down hate: Patriots.

In these late days of 2017, we're all well-accustomed to what a racist looks and sounds like. So instead of talking about the antics of whining hatemongers again, we felt it would be better to highlight the everyday heroes who stood up in Tennessee this weekend and said: "Hell no."

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Topics Activism Racial Justice

Adam Rosenberg

Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.