Per Buzzfeed News, Richard Spencer was recently accused of physically and emotionally abusing Nina Koupriianova, his wife. This information has come about in the wake of the couple’s recent divorce filings. For those that don’t know him by reputation, Spencer is the white nationalist who went viral for both advocating for an ethnostate and being decked by an anonymous hero during an interview. He’s attempted to give several speeches across multiple college campuses, but is almost always met with protestors, given his racist ideals.
We’ve gone through the information surrounding Koupriianova’s allegations against Spencer and compiled the ten most important parts.
To begin, Spencer refuses to acknowledge any damage he may have caused his wife. In court filings, he said he “denies each, every, and all allegations.” Spencer’s concern lies only with himself and his own self-image.
Spencer goes on, in an interview with the Washington Post, to say that his work was taking a “toll” on his relationship with Koupriianova. So immediately, Spencer contradicts himself. He’s aware of the fact that his actions are affecting his wife—he just doesn’t want to admit it. That’s revealed even more when it comes to how Spencer responds to the allegations.
His defense relies heavily on calling Koupriianova’s story into question. In one part of her argument, Koupriianova tells the court that their, as witnesses, their children were directly affected by Spencer’s abuse. In his affidavit, Spencer writes that his ex-wife “obviously and litigiously, tries to rope the children into our dispute by saying they were in the room next door or they overheard abusive talk.” By calling her story a hoax, Spencer devalues Koupriianova as a person.
Koupriianova’s affidavit even asserts that Spencer was abusive to the family babysitter. Spencer allegedly called the babysitter “fucking sub-mediocre human being” and a “fucking moron,” while the children were within earshot. Spencer has no concern for who he hurts, or how he does it. His empathy is non-existent.
Spencer is even known for inciting in violence at his speeches. In court, Koupriianova goes on to say that “[Spencer] continues to engage in extremely polarizing public speech advocating ‘peaceful ethnic cleansing’ and a white-only ‘ethno-state’ which tends to invite passions and violence.” He knowingly brings violence to every campus he steps on. Spencer ought to know, considering this:
Spencer’s reaction to being publicly assaulted, then was to bring a loaded weapon into his home, which Koupriianova described as “accessible by children.” It was kept in his bedroom, where one of his fits of rage could have easily inspired an even more tragic incident than what constantly took place.
Koupriianova recounts being dragged down a set of stairs at one point: “I was very sick with the stomach flu, could not keep food or water down, and wanted to stay in bed recovering. Mr. Spencer wanted to watch a movie downstairs and did not take ‘no’ for an answer,” she wrote. “He dragged me out of bed by my arms, legs, and hair, dragged me down the stairs, and threw me onto the couch. At that point he calmed down and turned on his movie. The incident resulted in bruises.” This is only one of several cases of violence she reports.
Spencer’s justifications of his abuse against Koupriianova sets up a clear and disturbing motive. One tagline was “I’m famous, and you are not! I’m important, and you are not!” The most frequent line, though is even more revelatory. Spencer says “the only language women understand is violence.”
These abusers set an example. It’s this pattern of abuse that Spencer’s followers and Kavanaugh supporters alike will feed off of—and that’s the worst revelation of all.