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| Obama to deliver Clementa Pinckney eulogy at Charleston funeral – rolling report | |
| (34 minutes later) | |
| 1.16pm ET18:16 | |
| Ed Pilkington | |
| The TD Arena at the College of Charleston where the funeral of Reverend Clementa Pinckney is being held has been the scene of an extraordinary outpouring of grief this morning. Thousands of people have endured intense heat to wait for hours in line in hope of attending the service. Thousands have been turned away. | |
| Gospel singers in line for Rev Pinckney funeral #Charlestonshooting longest line I've ever seen https://t.co/fJgyGY0Y8w | |
| Inside the arena, packed with more than 5,000 attendees, the tone of the service has been one of celebration of the life of Pinckney rather than dwelling on the horror of last week. The full choir of Mother Emanuel, Pinckney’s church where he was gunned down last week, has been pounding out gospel songs; many of the women in the arena are dressed in brilliant white. | |
| Perhaps the most heartbreaking part of the proceedings are the messages left to Pinckney by his two young daughters in the published order of service. Malana, who hid with her mother Jennifer in a side room while her father and eight other members of the church were being killed, wrote: | |
| Dear Daddy | |
| I know you were shot at the Church | |
| And you went to Heaven | |
| I love you so much! | |
| I know you love me | |
| Her sister Eliana wrote a poem, part of which reads: | |
| My dear father passed away | |
| And although he may be gone | |
| He’s there with me all day and night long | |
| I will always remember and love you | |
| God Almighty. Poems written by Malana and Eliana Pinckney for their father. In the funeral program this morning. pic.twitter.com/CgGsE0il8U | |
| Updated at 1.17pm ET | |
| 1.09pm ET18:09 | |
| This service really is a celebration of Pinckney and his life of service. | |
| Pinckney has been lauded by speakers for taking up issues like expansion of Medicaid, access to the voting booth, end of the predatory lending practices and push for body cameras for America’s police forces. | |
| He used his for the voiceless, said state senator Gerald Malloy. | |
| Malloy said Pinckney’s last act as a Christian and senator was to open his door to someone he did not know, someone who did not look like him. As America pays its respect to Pickney it must not close the doors he gave his life to open, said Malloy. | |
| “His sacrifice must lead to reconciliation,” he said. | |
| Other speakers called on those gathered to remember Pinckney when they “are tempted to do what is politically expedient instead of what’s right” and also called for prayers for President Obama, who they said is not just a global statesman but also a churchman. | |
| 12.57pm ET17:57 | |
| Last night, while performing in South Carolina, Sir Paul McCartney dedicated a song to the victims of the mass shooting, according to the Huffington Post. | |
| “We pray that people of all colors will be able to live together in peace and harmony,” said McCartney, before launching into a rendition of the 1970 Beatles classic The Long And Winding Road. | |
| Paul McCartney dedicates "Long and Winding Road" to Charleston during his concert in Columbia pic.twitter.com/dPgtvJLlyG | |
| 12.47pm ET17:47 | |
| Among those in attendance: | |
| Reverend Al Sharpton, Reverend Jesse Jackson, South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, Charleston mayor Joe Riley, South Carolina senator Lindsey Graham, and former secretary of state Hillary Clinton. | |
| John Boehner, speaker of the House, is on his way. He is traveling with President Obama. | |
| 12.33pm ET17:33 | 12.33pm ET17:33 |
| 12.33pm ET17:33 | 12.33pm ET17:33 |
| Shortly, we are expected to hear from President Obama when he delivers his eulogy. Here is Ed Pilkington on what to expect: | Shortly, we are expected to hear from President Obama when he delivers his eulogy. Here is Ed Pilkington on what to expect: |
| In his remarks so far on the Charleston massacre, Obama has tended to emphasize his frustration with America’s lax gun laws which, as he put it the day after the shootings, has forced him “to make statements like this too many times”. He also made reference in that speech to the Emanuel AME church, the scene of the carnage, as a place of worship founded by African Americans seeking an end to slavery. | In his remarks so far on the Charleston massacre, Obama has tended to emphasize his frustration with America’s lax gun laws which, as he put it the day after the shootings, has forced him “to make statements like this too many times”. He also made reference in that speech to the Emanuel AME church, the scene of the carnage, as a place of worship founded by African Americans seeking an end to slavery. |
| But his remarks in public over the past nine days have been restrained, muted almost, in regard to the overt racial nature of the attack. The past nine days have been in keeping with the cautious stance that America’s first black president has consistently adopted when talking directly about the country’s legacy of racial strife. | But his remarks in public over the past nine days have been restrained, muted almost, in regard to the overt racial nature of the attack. The past nine days have been in keeping with the cautious stance that America’s first black president has consistently adopted when talking directly about the country’s legacy of racial strife. |
| Whatever the extent of his comments on race on Friday, it is certain that his eulogy will address the many achievements of its subject. The president will have rich material to work with – the aftermath of last week’s massacre has been marked by an outpouring of affection and praise for the 41-year-old Pinckney in both his public roles, as pastor and as state senator. | Whatever the extent of his comments on race on Friday, it is certain that his eulogy will address the many achievements of its subject. The president will have rich material to work with – the aftermath of last week’s massacre has been marked by an outpouring of affection and praise for the 41-year-old Pinckney in both his public roles, as pastor and as state senator. |
| Related: Cloud of racism hangs heavy over Obama eulogy for South Carolina pastor | Related: Cloud of racism hangs heavy over Obama eulogy for South Carolina pastor |
| 12.30pm ET17:30 | 12.30pm ET17:30 |
| Funeral service is under way | Funeral service is under way |
| It’s been little over a week since Dylann Roof entered the Emanuel AME church, joined a bible study group and killed nine people. More than 5,000 people have gathered to pay their respects to Reverend Clementa Pinckney, the pastor who among those gunned down by Roof. Pinckney was 41 years old and a father of two. | It’s been little over a week since Dylann Roof entered the Emanuel AME church, joined a bible study group and killed nine people. More than 5,000 people have gathered to pay their respects to Reverend Clementa Pinckney, the pastor who among those gunned down by Roof. Pinckney was 41 years old and a father of two. |
| Barack Obama is expected to deliver the eulogy for Reverend Pinckney. He will be joined by first lady Michelle Obama as well as vice-president Joe Biden and his wife, Jill. Hillary Clinton is also in attendance. | Barack Obama is expected to deliver the eulogy for Reverend Pinckney. He will be joined by first lady Michelle Obama as well as vice-president Joe Biden and his wife, Jill. Hillary Clinton is also in attendance. |
| As Pinckney’s funeral got under way, those gathered at the TD Arena at the College of Charleston were invited to join in the service and were reminded that despite the television cameras and the long lines “what we enter now is worship”. | As Pinckney’s funeral got under way, those gathered at the TD Arena at the College of Charleston were invited to join in the service and were reminded that despite the television cameras and the long lines “what we enter now is worship”. |
| They were told that the venue was no longer a TD Arena but a sanctuary. | They were told that the venue was no longer a TD Arena but a sanctuary. |
| Join us now as we cover this service live. My colleague Ed Pilkington is reporting live from Charleston. | Join us now as we cover this service live. My colleague Ed Pilkington is reporting live from Charleston. |