Via: APFew other terms accurately capture what happened.
Around 9 p.m. Wednesday, a white gunman opened fire during a Bible study session at the historically black Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina. The New York Times reports that eight victims were killed at the scene, while a ninth died later at a nearby hospital. The gunman, identified as 21-year-old Dylann Storm Roof, was apprehended Thursday morning.
According to WSOCTV, one of the three people who survived the attack was a 5-year-old girl who played dead to avoid being shot. CNN reports Roof told another survivor that he "was letting her live so she could tell people what happened."
One term officials have used liberally to describe this incident is a "hate crime" — though Fox News' Steve Doocy, predictably, takes issue with it being characterized as racial, suggesting this was an attack on "Christians" rather than black people.
But the killer's alleged statements to one survivor — "You rape our women and are taking over our country and you have to go," he said, according to NBC 5's Eric King — seems to imply a targeted appeal to historical white fears of black encroachment, while the long history of white supremacists attacking black churches in the U.S. firmly situates this in a legacy of racial terror.
Yet still, we hesitate to use the word "terrorism." In modern Western parlance, that term is used overwhelmingly to describe acts of violence committed by Muslims. It was used when the media reported on the Charlie Hebdo massacre in Paris and the Muhammad cartoon shooting in Garland, Texas, last month. But when a 21-year-old white man opens fire on a room full of black churchgoers, terrorism charges are not levied so readily by the public or the media.
Perhaps the word needs to be reclaimed. Because make no mistake: The violence that's been committed against black people in the U.S. including and since slavery is one long, politically motivated act of terror. Mass violence, shootings, bombings and lynchings have been used to deny black people their rights to vote, move freely, attend schools, conduct business and generally exist in this country for centuries. And as long-standing centers for black spiritual and political life, black places of worship have been frequent targets.
So when an incident like the Charleston shooting occurs — in a church co-founded by slave revolt leader Denmark Vesey, no less — the hallmarks and trauma of American terrorism become not only apparent, but largely undeniable. Terrorism is terrorism, regardless of the perpetrator.
And if what happened in Charleston last night doesn't fit the bill, it's unclear what does.
June 18, 2015, 11:28 a.m.: This story has been updated.
Via: APThese Are the 9 Men and Women Tragically Murdered by the Charleston Shooter
Throughout Thursday, media attention was transfixed by Dylann Roof, the suspected shooter in the recent massacre at a black church in Charleston, South Carolina. At the same time, however, comparatively few media reports are devoting much attention to the victims. Even more than 12 hours after the incident, relatively little is known and even reliable photographs of each individual killed have been difficult to locate.
Throughout the country, vigils were held to commemorate the dead and to honor the lives they had lived. Below are the nine ordinary people taken from the world before their time.
1. Rev. Clementa Pinckney, 41
The 41-year-old pastor and South Carolina state senator was the most publicly known victim of Wednesday night's shooting. Previously, Pinckney had been well-known as a community activist and supported legislation requiring police to wear body cameras. The senator also served on the Southern Mutual Insurance Company's board of directors. He leaves behind a wife and two children, according to an official government website.
2. Cynthia Hurd, 54
According to her employer, the Charleston County Public Library, Cynthia Hurd "dedicated her life to serving and improving the lives of others." Photos of Hurd smiling can be seen on the library's Flickr page. In honor of her death and 31 years of service, the library announced it would close all its branches Thursday. "Her loss is incomprehensible," the CCPL said, Buzzfeed reported.
3. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, 45
Pinckney wasn't the only religious leader taken in Wednesday's massacre. Another reverend at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, Sharonda Coleman-Singleton was also a local high school track coach and a mother of three. The Facebook page of Goose Creek High School described their loss and said a vigil would be held in Coleman-Singleton's honor at 7:00 p.m. Thursday. Her son Chris also asked for prayers from his Twitter account.
4. Tywanza Sanders, 26
The banner of Tywanza Sanders' Facebook page reads "your dreams are calling you." For him, that meant a degree from Allen University in Columbia, South Carolina, in their Division of Business Administration in 2014. Sanders, who friends suggested was shy, had expressed an interest in broadcasting. In a statement reported by Buzzfeed, the school's vice president of Institutional Advancement, Flavia Eldemire, said Sanders was "a quiet, well-known student who was committed to his education." Initial reports indicate he died while protecting other members of his family.
5. Myra Thompson, 59
Myra Thompson was the wife of another religious figure, Rev. Anthony Thompson, the vicar of Holy Trinity Reformed Episcopal Church in Charleston. Church official Archbishop Foley Beach asked followers to pray in the aftermath.
6. Ethel Lee Lance, 70
Ethel Lee Lance was a grandmother and sexton at Emanuel AME when her life was taken. Her grandson Jon Quil Lance told the Post and Courier, "Granny was the heart of the family," and added she had worked in the church for more than three decades.
7. Susie Jackson, 87
Another grandmother, Susie Jackson was also a longtime member of Emanuel AME and was identified as a victim by a relative. She was also Lance's cousin, according to the Post and Courier.
8. Daniel L. Simmons, 74
The only victim who did not die at the church, 74-year-old Daniel Simmons succumbed to his injuries at a local hospital, authorities said at a press conference Thursday. Simmons, a retired pastor from another church, regularly attended Wednesday Bible study services at Emanuel AME and June 17, 2015 was, tragically, no exception, ABC News reported.
9. Depayne Middleton Doctor, 49
According to her LinkedIn profile, Doctor worked as a former manager of the U.S. Department of Commerce and graduated from Southern Wesleyan University with a Master's degree, Organizational Management.
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