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Facebook pledges to remove any 'post that promotes or celebrates hate crimes'

SAN FRANCISCO — Mark Zuckerberg condemned the actions of white supremacists at last weekend's deadly rally in Charlottesville, Va., pledging to remove any threats of physical harm made on Facebook.

SAN FRANCISCO — Mark Zuckerberg condemned the actions of white supremacists at last weekend's deadly rally in Charlottesville, Va., pledging to remove any threats of physical harm made on Facebook.

"With the potential for more rallies, we're watching the situation closely," the Facebook CEO wrote in a post on his Facebook page. "We won't always be perfect, but you have my commitment that we'll keep working to make Facebook a place where everyone can feel safe."

Facebook has frequently been criticized for being too slow to remove hate speech. But the Silicon Valley company is "better than most of the tech companies in removing explicitly racist material," says Heidi Beirich of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which monitors hate groups.

After Charlottesville, Facebook took down pages belonging to white supremacist groups including White Nationalists United, Right Wing Death Squad and Vanguard America.

"We've just had a really productive conversation with Facebook," she said. "A lot of neo-Nazis have abandoned Facebook. They are much more responsive and they have told us they are going to redouble their efforts."

Zuckerberg’s post came days after a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville turned deadly, killing one and injuring 19, and as other tech companies crack down on neo-Nazi and white supremacist groups on their platforms.

His Facebook post appeared to also take aim at President Trump's controversial statements casting blame for the violence in Charlottesville on "both sides."

“It's a disgrace that we still need to say that neo-Nazis and white supremacists are wrong — as if this is somehow not obvious," Zuckerberg wrote.

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