Marshall Rawson, candidate for a state seat in Florida’s House of Representatives, attended the August 2017 Unite the Right rally with the League of the South—a neo-Confederate, white nationalist organization—according to an investigation by Talking Points Memo. The report, published September 14, includes multiple photos and videos of the Republican at the event with neo-Nazis.
Rawson defeated incumbent Chase Brannon in an August 18 primary, and is expected to win the conservative 10th district in November.
While Rawson has previously addressed his prior affiliation with LOS, his attendance with his wife at the deadly white nationalist rally was not previously known. The Southern Poverty Law Center and the Anti-Defamation League both identify the LOS as a hate group.
In its profile on LOS, SPLC notes, “The League gained notoriety for its role in sparking some of the worst violence on display during the ‘Unite the Right’ rally.”
At press time, the Rawson campaign had not publicly addressed the investigation or responded to C-VILLE’s request for comment.
Community matters
The Charlottesville Low-Income Housing Coalition will host a panel on racial inequity and housing on September 16 at 6pm. The event, Whose City? A community panel about luxury and affordable housing, will be held at the Jefferson School African American Heritage Center, with panelists including James Bryant, Zyahna Bryant, Latricia Giles, and Shamaal Sheppard.
Shots fired
Charlottesville police are investigating a shots fired incident that occurred on the Downtown Mall near CVS around 1:58am on September 12. No injuries were reported in connection with the incident, but detectives found seven 9mm casings in the area and some businesses were damaged. This is an ongoing investigation, and anyone with information can contact Crime Stoppers anonymously at 977-4000.
