Five years ago, nine people were murdered when a white supremacist opened fire during a Bible study group at Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina. One of the victims was Cynthia Graham Hurd, the sister of Charlotte City Council member Malcolm Graham.
Graham is spending the anniversary of his sister’s death thinking about how she lived her life, not how she died. Hurd was a longtime librarian at the Charleston County Public Library.
"(She) loved her community, loved her family, loved her God and was just a great person" Graham said.
Wednesday is also a day of reflection, Graham says, on racial relations as protests against systemic racism and police brutality continue around the country.
"It’s George Floyd that has sparked the protests, but people are protesting racism and hatred and discrimination," Graham said. "Five years after Charleston, I think things have gotten worse, not better."
He says the political climate is more divided and says President Trump is part of the problem. Graham thought the racially motivated shooting in Charleston would have been the catalyst for change in the country.
"I was hopeful five years ago," Graham said. "I was hopeful that this would be the thing, this would be the moment, this would be the incident that would really cause people to pause and think, but it wasn’t."
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, many remembrances have moved online, including a video tribute that incorporates a message from former Vice President Joe Biden. In Charlotte, Graham organized the Black Men United March and Rally in Marshall Park in uptown scheduled for 4 p.m. Wednesday. Graham plans to be out no matter what the weather is like: Racism, he says, doesn’t take a day off because it’s raining.
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