Donald Trump calls out KKK, Neo-Nazis white supremacists over violence

Following increasing pressure from Republicans and Democrats alike, US President Donald Trump in a statement on Monday has finally called out and condemned hate groups, including white supremacists, the KKK and neo-Nazis in response to the deadly attack in Charlottesville, Virginia, over the weekend, after criticism that his initial response to the tragedy was insufficient.

The  statement comes two days after a driver rammed a car into a crowd of people in the midst of violent clashes over a white nationalist rally in the city.

Speaking from the Diplomatic Room at the White House, Trump said that hatred and bigotry "has no place in America" while labeling racism as "evil".

Racism is evil, and those who cause violence in its name are criminals and thugs, including the KKK, [Ku Klux Klan], neo-Nazis, white supremacists and other hate groups that are repugnant to everything we hold dear as Americans, Trump said.

We are a nation founded on the truth that all of us are created equal, he said.

Those who spread violence in the name of bigotry strike at the very core of America, Trump said.

To anyone who acted criminally in this weekend's racist violence, you will be held fully accountable," he said. Justice will be delivered.​

He said the Department of Justice has opened up a civil rights investigation of the tragedy, and said "we will spare no resource fighting so every American child can grow up free from violence and fear".

The white supremacist groups staged demonstrations at the University of Virginia on Friday and in downtown Charlottesville on Saturday.

They were holding a "Unite the Right" rally, to protest the Charlottesville City Council's decision to remove a statute of Robert E. Lee, the Civil War general when violence broke out leaving one woman, Heather Heyer, 32 dead who was hit by a car allegedly driven by a man with ties to white supremacy groups into a crowd of counter-protesters.
 

violence at a white nationalist rally that included the Ku Klux Klan and neo-Nazi groups

Trump's immediate response to the violence, which he did not label an act of terrorism or include a denunciation of white supremacists, was met with bipartisan backlash. 

In remarks on the rally on Saturday, Trump condemned the "egregious display of hatred, bigotry and violence on many sides." 

In times such as these, America has always shown its true character, he said.

Responding to hate with love, division with unity and violence with an unwavering resolve for justice.