Listen to Alison’s Story
Alison tells her story of how they held hands and formed a circle around the spot of the car attack.
“This is what our community looks like!”
August 13, 2017, at 3:23 PM
“And as I stood there with my community, with people, you know, I didn't know most of them, those feelings of helplessness and and even some of the anger just started to kind of dissipate.”
- Alison
Interview Transcript
Alison
My name is Alison and I've been in the Charlottesville community about 30 years. And so, yes, this picture is at the place where Heather Heyer was killed on August 13th. And to really understand this picture, it's kind of important to understand that whole day, I feel like for me. And actually that whole couple of days. So, actually I was driving back from the beach on August 12th and hearing from people all of the things that were going on and it and really scared and worried about what was happening to our community. And the next day, then, on the 13th, I felt the need to get out and reclaim my community from these these outsiders who had come in and brought hatred to our city. And I was, I was afraid, actually, I didn't know what I was going to be met with. I had been hearing all the stories. I didn't really know what it was going to be like. But I felt the need to get out there. And so I went to the downtown mall. And it was a beautiful day, and people were out just going to restaurants and being out and about, and everybody was hugging each other, there was just love. And, you know, you didn't pass by somebody without smiling or nodding or hugging or just acknowledging each other. It was like the community had come out and said, you know, we're we're taken back our community. So I started to feel more hopeful and and connected with with people. And then I went to Heather Heyer’s, uh, memorial spot. And there I felt helpless and sad and just grief and thinking about the family and the senselessness of this. And then, I'm not quite sure how it happened, but suddenly, we formed the circle and, and, and held hands. And then as people would come to the circle, we'd open up and welcome other people in. And as I stood there with my community, with people, you know, I didn't know most of them, those feelings of helplessness and and even some of the anger just started to kind of dissipate. And I, I started to feel more hopeful and strong and and frankly, defiant. And felt this sense of: we are stronger together, we are going to heal from this, and frankly, it's time for you people to go, right? Like, leave our community. And so it was an incredibly powerful day for me.
Music credit: Elm Lake / Time Does Not Matter / courtesy of www.epidemicsound.com