Mother of Heather Heyer Blames Trump for Her Death

If you ask Susan Bro, there is plenty of blame to go around for her daughter's death: 20-year-old James Fields, who is charged with second-degree murder; unprepared local authorities; white supremacists; and, yes, even President Trump. In an exclusive interview with the Daily Beast, Bro says she is "starting to come to [the] conclusion" that Trump is responsible for the death of her daughter, Heather Heyer, "because he definitely pushes forward a hateful agenda." The 32-year-old Heyer was killed in August when a car drove into a crowd of anti-Nazi and anti-white supremacist protesters in Charlottesville. After Heyer's death, Trump claimed there were "very fine people" on both sides. Bro disagrees. "Nazis: bad people. White supremacists: bad people," she says. "And I don’t see that you can call it any other way."

Fields, charged with driving the car that killed Heyer and injured others, is scheduled for a preliminary hearing Thursday. Bro says she will be there. "I know he claims he felt threatened," she says. "People were attacking his car because he was driving over top of them. He was not under any attack until he drove into the crowd." Now, four months after Heyer's death, Bro says threats of violence continue to pour in from extremists. She's had to inter her daughter's ashes in a secret location known only to some family and friends. “It’s a symptom of hate in society that you should have to protect your child’s grave, for Pete’s sake,” Bro says. “So, I’m protecting my child now.” Read the full interview here for more, including why Bro is "frustrated" with those who characterize her daughter as a martyr. (More Heather Heyer stories.)