Judge Awards $5 to 'Free Speech' Rally Organizer Because a Woman Cursed at Him

An award of trivial damages vindicates the complaint while rejecting its importance

Last summer’s infamous neo-Nazi rally in Charlottesville, Virginia was supposedly about “free speech.” But that claim was always ridiculous. The latest evidence? Jason Kessler, one of the organizers of the rally, sued a woman for swearing at him. And a judge in Charlottesville has now awarded Kessler $5.

Kessler sued Donna Gasapo for $500 because she said things like “Fuck you, asshole,” and called Kessler a “crybaby.” Gasapo never denied saying the words, but her attorney argued that what she said was protected under the First Amendment. Kessler said that her words were in violation of Virginia’s anti-dueling laws. And on Friday, a judge decided in favor of Kessler.

The incident between Kessler and Gasapo took place on March 16, 2018 at the DeAndre Harris assault trial. Harris, a black man, was beaten up by six white men at the neo-Nazi rally, formally known as the Unite the Right rally. Two white supremacists were found guilty of “malicious wounding.”

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