--- title: White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets Punched description: A man punched white nationalist Richard Spencer in the face in Washington Friday following the inauguration of President Donald Trump. canonical: https://time.com/4642117/richard-spencer-punched-white-nationalist-nazi-trump-inauguration/ author: TIME Staff article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-01-21T02:45:02.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-10-07T07:14:20.139Z article:section: Politics og:title: White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets Punched During an Interview og:description: The attack took place in Washington D.C. following Donald Trump's inauguration og:url: https://time.com/4642117/richard-spencer-punched-white-nationalist-nazi-trump-inauguration/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta93485e97c454a71/6988b68097cdffa6606af2ff/richard-spencer.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Richard Spencer og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets Punched During an Interview twitter:description: The attack took place in Washington D.C. following Donald Trump's inauguration twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blta93485e97c454a71/6988b68097cdffa6606af2ff/richard-spencer.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # White Nationalist Richard Spencer Gets Punched During an Interview > Sponsored content. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=86bf5a1b-0352-43f3-9399-a9589b8273e0&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Richard Spencer Gets Hit By Protester [Watch (HLS stream): Richard Spencer Gets Hit By Protester](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/99EXQ7rQ.m3u8) (0:42)  _Published 2017-01-21. District of Columbia police are using tear gas canisters in a confrontation with protesters in downtown Washington._ by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Jan 21, 2017 2:45 AM UTC by [TIME Staff](https://time.com/author/time-staff/) ## TIME Staff Jan 21, 2017 2:45 AM UTC A hooded man punched white nationalist [Richard Spencer](http://time.com/4592947/students-protest-white-nationalist-richard-spencer-texas-am/) in the face in downtown Washington D.C. Friday following the inauguration of President Donald Trump. At the time Spencer [said](https://twitter.com/RichardBSpencer/status/822571322819641344) 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](http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-01-21/richard-spencer-national-policy-institute-punched-abc-interview/8200270). 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](http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2017/01/20/white-nationalist-richard-spencer-punched-during-dc-protests/96859496/) at 2:30pm at the corner of 14th and K Streets. After the assault, Spencer posted [a live video on Twitter](https://twitter.com/RichardBSpencer/status/822571322819641344), 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](http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2016/11/richard-spencer-speech-npi/508379/) 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. ## Transcript To be honest, this is where we are. I've given conferences for ages. And we'll usually expect some protestors, they'll do silly string or something like that. We've entered this new world where the leftist protestors- Are you a Neo- Nazi? No, I'm not a Neo- Nazi. Do you like black people? Yeah, sure. Would you marry a black woman? If your not a Neo- Nazi? Neo- Nazi's don't love me, they kind of hate me actually. You're following the KKK, Neo- Nazi- Those people don't like me to be honest. Are you like the hipster version of the Neo- Nazi movement? What? What is your little [ INAUDIBLE ]? It's, Pepe has become kind of a symbol. 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