Charting a better way forward for South Carolina after church killings
This article was originally posted on July 8, 2015 at The Post and Courier.
On the evening of June 17, 2015, a hate crime took place at a Wednesday prayer meeting at Mother Emanuel AME Church near Marion Square in Charleston.
The absolutely horrid nature of the crime, the cold-blooded assassination of innocent people solely because they were black — all under the ideology of white supremacy — shocked us all. It tore at the social fabric we all depend on to carry out our daily lives in a civilized way in our communities and our country. And it is this kind of senseless crime, shaped by racism and fueled by hate and hate talk, that our state must confront in a common sense and deliberate way.
The family members of those who were killed and the leadership and members of Emanuel AME in Charleston, moving with grace, dignity, and Christian forgiveness, set an example for our communities, our state, and the entire country on how to begin the healing process and prevent greater racial division.
Many of our state’s political, religious, and university leaders have responded with determination to remove the Confederate battle flag from the State House grounds, and that, beyond a shadow of a doubt, is the right thing for South Carolina.