Ku Klux Klan plans rally at South Carolina statehouse

The Ku Klux Klan plans to rally in July in response to calls to remove the Confederate flag from South Carolina statehouse grounds.

"We will be at the statehouse in Columbia, S.C., standing up for our Confederate history and all the southerners who fought and died against federal tyranny," an automated message on the Loyal White Knights's answering machine said.

The white supremacist group, which claims association with the KKK, is based out of Pelham, N.C., according to the group's website.

"Our government is trying to erase white culture and our heritage right out of the pages of history books," the message said.

Brian Gaines, spokesman for the S.C. Budget and Control Board, confirmed plans of the rally to USA TODAY Network. It will occur on July 18 from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. ET, he wrote in an email. Reservations to use the statehouse grounds are made online and are given on a first-come, first-served basis, he wrote.

Republican Gov. Nikki Haley has issued a statement criticizing the rally.

"This is our state, and they are not welcome," Haley said in an email sent to USA TODAY Network. At a press conference on June 22, Haley called on legislators to vote to have the flag removed.

Actions to have the Confederate flag taken down come in the wake of a shooting on June 17 in Charleston that left nine people dead. The victims were black, and the suspected gunman, 21-year-old Dylann Storm Roof, was white. Officials have called the incident a hate crime.

After the shooting, which took place at the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, photos surfaced of Roof posing with the Confederate flag.

Since then, there have been increased calls to remove the flag from the statehouse grounds because many consider it to be a racist symbol. The flag currently flies next to a memorial honoring those who served in the Civil War. State legislators will reconvene on Monday to consider legislation regarding the flag's removal.