Leadership in Charleston

Vice News took a leap into the coverage of the events that occurred in Charlottesville. One reporter stuck with the Alt-Right movement throughout the events before, during, and after protests in Charlottesville. The focus remains on the leader of the “Unite the Right” movement, Christopher Cantwell. A successful leader must have charisma, prophecy, and pragmatism, and Cantwell has none of these qualities.

First the nature of leadership in the Alt-Right movement should be recognized. The leaders were semi-organized as they got permits for their protest, but they were unorganized in their evacuation process. Protestors were running crazy, which resulted in fights and a state of emergency. Furthermore, the leaders had no sense of humor. Every single word was said with hate and animosity. Lastly, Cantwell has strong egotism, and he doesn’t see the opposition as equals, instead he thinks “Black Lives Matters” supporters should bow down to him.

A successful leader must have charisma. Cantwell is not a strong speaker, and he doesn’t speak well for the people of his movement. Oftentimes he stumbles over his words, which seems to aggravate him. Every time the reporter would ask him a question he would end up yelling his answer to her. A charismatic leader can maintain composure and bravery in difficult times, whereas Cantwell crumbles under pressure. Furthermore, his speeches aren’t being mass-produced and changing outsiders’ point of view of the movement, instead he is gaining a name from YouTube as a terrorist.

Prophecy is another factor of a successful leader. The prophet of the movement must be knowledgeable about everything in their movement, which includes knowledge of the opposition. Successful prophets will set a moral tone for their movement. Cantwell doesn’t give the opposition a chance to even explain their side, which means he has very little knowledge about “Black Lives Matters.” His focus is on wiping out the “savages,” so America can return to their normal ways of life. Additionally, Cantwell shows the movement that he has an evil morality by bringing guns and knives to their protest. He is prepared to take lives, and the followers in the movement follow that moral tone.

The last aspect of a successful leader is pragmatism. Leaders will create a “secure and stable foundation for growth.” They want to have reconciliation and communication rather than fights and excommunication. This is just another area Cantwell fails. He is constantly seeking arguments, fights, and protests. The alt-right movement does not feel open to outsiders because it seems exclusive and it isn’t a movement people can easily join. For example, “Black Lives Matter” gives opportunity for anyone to speak their mind, as well as join their movement through multiple social media outlets.

In conclusion, Cantwell is an awful leader, and he is capable of doing horrible actions. America will be in danger if he takes violent measures because his followers will trail behind him. Cantwell claims the movement did nothing wrong during the attack in Charlottesville, and he blames the civilians for standing in the vehicles way. He completely justifies the actions of the alt-right movement. Then he informed America that this was just the beginning by saying, “It’s going to be really tough to top, but we’re up to the challenge.”