Jew-hating white supremacist who cried on video begs for sympathy: 'I'm a goddamn human being'

A white supremacist who filmed himself crying about a warrant for his arrest following his participation in the violence at the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville has hit back at the ignominious title of "crying Nazi" assigned to him by the media.

Christopher Cantwell handed himself over to authorities in Lynchburg, Virginia, after a violent rally took place on the 11 August in which he pepper-sprayed protesters.

Speaking to the Daily Beast, he said: "When I come down here for a permitted demonstration, championed by the ACLU, where the police are supposed to be clearing our enemies from our path, and then I find myself involved in a riot facing 20 years in prison, I got emotional, shockingly enough.

"One minute I'm a f*****g white supremacist terrorist and the next minute I'm a f*****g crybaby? I'm a goddamn human being."

Before handing himself into police, Cantwell become one of the figureheads of the violence after appearing in a documentary for Vice.

He was defiant about his appearance at the rally. "We're not non-violent," Cantwell said. "We'll f*****g kill these people if we have to."

But he later appeared tearful in a video filmed from hiding, and said that he feared he would be arrested - or even killed. "I do not want violence with you," he said, talking directly to police. "I'm terrified. I'm afraid you're going to kill me, I really am."

On 12 August, the white supremacist rally in Charlottesville was met by counter-protests. The day ended in death when neo-Nazi Alex Fields allegedly drove his car into an crowd of anti-fascist protesters, killing Heather Heyer, 32, and injuring another 19 people. Fields was charged with second-degree murder and other offences and is set to appear in court on 25 August.