Victim called a ‘strong woman’

Heather D. Heyer, who was killed in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday when a car plowed into a crowd that was protesting a rally of white nationalists, was a passionate advocate for the disenfranchised and was often moved to tears by the world’s injustices, her supervisor said.

“Heather was a very strong woman,” said Alfred A. Wilson, manager of the bankruptcy division at the Miller Law Group in Charlottesville, where Heyer worked as a paralegal. He said she stood up against “any type of discrimination. That’s just how she’s always been.”

Wilson said in an interview Sunday that he found her at her computer crying many times.

“Heather being Heather has seen something on Facebook or read something in the news and realized someone has been mistreated and gets upset,” he said.

A couple of years ago, she was dating someone who became agitated after learning that Wilson was black and that they were friends.

“She just didn’t like the way he was judging me as a minority male that’s doing well for myself,” Wilson said, adding that Heyer stopped seeing the man after that.

Wilson hired Heyer at the recommendation of a friend. She had a high school diploma but didn’t have a background in law. She was working as a bartender and waitress, but he said she had an eye for detail and was a people person.

“If you can get people to open up to you, that’s what I need,’’ he told her. ‘‘I’ll teach you everything about the law you need to know.”

“To have someone like Heather believe in you, that’s one of the best things that could happen to you as a person,” Wilson said.

Heyer and other paralegals at the firm attended the protest in Charlottesville, where she lived. They were walking together when a car crashed into the crowd.

Charlottesville, in a statement about Heyer, said: “This senseless act of violence rips a hole in our collective hearts. While it will never make up for the loss of a member of our community, we will pursue charges against the driver of the vehicle that caused her death and are confident justice will prevail.”