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Trump Condemns "All Types Of Racism" Ahead Of "Unite The Right 2" & Twitter Is Livid

by Molly Longman
Pool/Getty Images News/Getty Images

White supremacists are getting ready for "Unite the Right 2," an anniversary event of the violent rally that took place in Charlottesville, Virginia, on Aug. 12. On Saturday morning, President Donald Trump tweeted ahead of "Unite the Right 2," condemning "all types of racism," pointing to last year's "riots" in Charlottesville.

Trump tweeted on Aug. 11:

The riots in Charlottesville a year ago resulted in senseless death and division. We must come together as a nation. I condemn all types of racism and acts of violence. Peace to ALL Americans!

During last year’s chaotic demonstrations, hateful and racist sentiments were shared by protesters. White nationalists marched with tiki torches and guns, and they chanted racist and anti-semitic sentiments such as "white lives matter" and “Jews will not replace us.” The tension reached a fever pitch when a man drove his car into a group of counter-protesters, killing a woman named Heather Heyer.

After all of that went down last year, many people weren't happy with Trump's response: He said there was "blame on both sides," seemingly equating the counter-protesters and white supremacists, as CNN reported.

Because the First Amendment allows for free speech and assembly, the same alt-right organizer from last year’s rally, Jason Kessler, put together another protest for Sunday afternoon, this time In Washington D.C. That triggered this new tweet from Trump, and some people aren't any happier with the way he worded the tweet than they were about his "both sides" comment last year.

One woman on Twitter, Erika Raskin, noted that Trump's tweeted pointedly said "all kinds of racism" wasn't as strong a statement as it could have been.

One writer on Twitter seemed to take Trump's words seriously, but noted that he was a year too late to decide to condemn any racism at all. He posted a TV news screenshot of the conference during which Trump said "You had some very bad people in that group, but you also had people that were very fine people, on both sides," per USA Today.

Rolling Stone writer Jamil Smith went ahead and just "amended" the tweet for the president, saying: "Amended: 'The white supremacist march and riot in Charlottesville one year ago stemmed from an American history of death and division. I continue to exploit that history and pain, and I have taken no steps at all to stem this growing public safety threat.'"

Others on Twitter took issue with Trump's use of the word "riot" when describing the violence in Charlottesville. More than one said the wording of the Trump tweet was coded as to appease members of the alt-right. Messages like this are often referred to as " dog whistles."

Meanwhile, one woman on Twitter, Donna Dishman, said the tweet was "just another way of saying 'very fine people on both sides.'"

Although this is just one tweet and we've yet to see if the Trump will make an in-person public statement ahead of the Unite the Right 2 protests, he's made waves already and reminded many people about the way he handled last year's demonstrations.