Eleven years ago today, convicted mass murderer Dylann Roof opened fire in a historically Black church. He killed nine congregants who invited him inside to worship and join them in prayer.
June 17, 2015, shook Charleston, the state and the nation.
Today, Mother Emanuel AME Church will hold special services to remember the lives lost and support the survivors.
“These events do not define who we are as a city,” wrote Charleston Mayor William Cogswell on this anniversary. “They reveal who we are: resilient and compassionate. In times of tragedy, we find community, and that is what I witness during this week, year after year, in the Holy City.”
The 11th Annual Day of Remembrance is centered on the theme “Out of Many, We are One”.
The church ministry says anyone who wishes to attend today’s services is welcome.
The 9 lives honored:
- Cynthia Graham Hurd
- Susie Jackson
- Ethel Lance
- Depayne Middleton-Doctor
- Clementa Pinckney
- Tywanza Sanders
- Daniel Simmons
- Sharonda Coleman-Singleton
- Myra Thompson
