Amalie C Nash

USA TODAY

White nationalist Richard Spencer, whose appearances have sparked controversy and protests, was twice punched by a masked protester in Washington D.C., following Trump's inauguration.

Video footage posted online shows Spencer, a leader of the alt-right movement, speaking near the corner of 14th and K Street around 2:30 p.m. when he is suddenly approached and punched twice. On Twitter, Spencer at first brushed off the assault, saying he can take a punch.

"I was just physically assaulted twice by antifas. No serious damage. I can take a punch," he wrote.

Spencer then went live in a 10-minute video in which he called the assault "a really terrible thing."

Spencer said he was walking with two people from the "Stateless Media" who are doing a documentary on him and the alt-right when they happened upon a "serious demonstration" in Franklin Square. He said he was recognized, people started gathering around him and suddenly a masked man punched him. "But he didn't really land it, and it didn't really hurt," he said.

He said he was then being interviewed when the man returned and sucker-punched him on the side of his head. Spencer said others moved in and protected him, but someone else got near and spat on him.

"They occurred in the most cowardly fashion possible," he said of the assaults. He noted that it was hard to hear from one ear and suggested he may have a mild concussion.

Spencer said he's used to "anti-fascists" confronting him, but that the attacks have escalated. He said he's now considering getting security.

Twitter reinstates white nationalist Richard Spencer

In November, Spencer was in D.C. for a white nationalist gathering, when he was caught on video shouting “Hail Trump!” to a crowd that responded with Nazi salutes.

The same month, Spencer was banned from Twitter, but the social media channel later reinstated his account.

217 arrests, 6 officer injuries during inauguration protests