A round of applause for student counter-protesters who stood up to white supremacists at UVA

"True bravery."
 By 
Chloe Bryan
 on 
A round of applause for student counter-protesters who stood up to white supremacists at UVA
CHARLOTTSVILLE, VA - MARCH 19: Lights illuminate a building of University of Virginia School of Medicine on March 19, 2015 in Charlottsville, Virginia. Martese Johnson is the black University of Virginia student whose face was bloodied during his arrest on March 18 outside the pub, seen in a widely distributed video and in photos. (Photo by Zach Gibson/Getty Images) Credit: Getty Images/zach gibson

On Friday night, a band of cowardly racists marched through the University of Virginia campus in Charlottesville. And while people on Twitter are rightfully condemning the hate rally (and making fun of its obviously mass-purchased tiki torches) they're also applauding the brave student counter-protesters who stood their ground.

Per a local NBC affiliate, counter-protesters clashed with the white supremacists when the march approached a statue of Thomas Jefferson. Some marchers even used their tiki torches as weapons. Police, however, did not arrive at the scene until the altercation was almost over.

Now, the internet is thanking the students for their bravery -- particularly since they were outnumbered, unprotected, and surrounded by a large group of Nazis. "In this time of blustery BS," wrote one Twitter user, "there's a lot of confusion about what it means to be 'brave' or 'tough.'

"For clarification, look at these people."

The march Friday functioned as a precursor to Saturday's planned Unite the Right March at Emancipation Park. At the time of writing, counter-protesters were also organizing for that event.

Topics Activism

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Chloe Bryan

Chloe was the shopping editor at Mashable. She was also previously a culture reporter. You can follow her on Twitter at @chloebryan.

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