• Politics
  • Race

White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets Punched During an Interview

2 minute read

A hooded man punched white nationalist Richard Spencer in the face in downtown Washington D.C. Friday following the inauguration of President Donald Trump.

At the time Spencer said he was with two filmmakers who are making a documentary on him. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation said he was also talking to their Washington bureau chief.

Spencer was ringed by a handful of protesters and bystanders and arguing that left-wing protests had become more intense.

“I’ve given conferences for ages,” he says, “and we’ll usually expect some protesters. They’ll do Silly String or something like that.”

He then adds “We’ve entered this new world where the leftist protesters…” but is interrupted by an onlooker who asks him if he is a neo-Nazi, which Spencer denies.

From off camera, a female voice asks him “Would you marry a black woman?” Spencer does not answer.

An attacker then lands a punch on the right side of Spencer’s face before running off. Spencer reels down the pavement but maintains his balance.

The attack reportedly took place at 2:30pm at the corner of 14th and K Streets.

After the assault, Spencer posted a live video on Twitter, denouncing it as “serious,” “terrible,” and “occurring in the most cowardly fashion possible.”

Spencer became infamous last November, after a video showed him shouting “Heil Trump” and quoting Nazi propaganda in German during an anti-Semitic speech at a white nationalist conference in Washington D.C., held to celebrate Donald Trump’s electoral victory.

Watch the attack on Spencer above.

 

More Must-Reads From TIME

Contact us at letters@time.com