Preserving memorials to the Old South has become an animating force for the white nationalist movement, not because all members are Southern, Schoep said, but because adherents see the drive to remove such monuments as part of a larger, anti-white crusade.
"It's an assault on American freedoms. Today it's Confederate monuments. Tomorrow it may be the Constitution or the American flag," Schoep said.
At the University of Florida, where Spencer has asked to speak, President W. Kent Fuchs called the events in Virginia "deplorable" but indicated school officials might be unable to block his appearance.
"While this speaker's views do not align with our values as an institution, we must follow the law, upholding the First Amendment not to discriminate based on content and provide access to a public space," Fuchs said in a message on the university's Facebook page.
Auburn University spent almost $30,000 in legal fees in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent Spencer from speaking on its campus in Alabama in April.
White Nationalists Say Charlottesville Was Just a Beginning
"It's an assault on American freedoms. Today it's Confederate monuments. Tomorrow it may be the Constitution or the American flag," Schoep said.
At the University of Florida, where Spencer has asked to speak, President W. Kent Fuchs called the events in Virginia "deplorable" but indicated school officials might be unable to block his appearance.
"While this speaker's views do not align with our values as an institution, we must follow the law, upholding the First Amendment not to discriminate based on content and provide access to a public space," Fuchs said in a message on the university's Facebook page.
Auburn University spent almost $30,000 in legal fees in an unsuccessful attempt to prevent Spencer from speaking on its campus in Alabama in April.
White Nationalists Say Charlottesville Was Just a Beginning