Dwight Howard attends vigil honoring Charleston shooting victims: ‘It just broke my heart’
Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard traveled to Charleston, S.C., on Friday to attend a vigil honoring the memories of the nine members of the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church who were shot dead last Wednesday.
Police say that a white gunman was welcomed into a bible study at the historic Emanuel AME last Wednesday before making racist remarks and opening fire, beginning a massacre that shook the nation. Authorities arrested 21-year-old Dylann Roof on Thursday in connection with the shootings the next day. On Friday, he was charged with nine counts of murder.
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“Pray for Charleston,” Howard wrote. “Pray for our nation. Pray for peace. #breatheagain”
At the vigil, Howard met with family members of two of the victims of last week’s attack: the Rev. Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, a pastor at Emanuel AME, and Myra Thompson, who worked as part of the church’s property committee.
Howard spoke about what motivated him to travel to Charleston during an interview with CNN’s Poppy Harlow on Sunday:
“Well, there were a series of events that had happened throughout the year, and I wanted to be there so bad,” Howard said. “But we had the season going on, we’re in the middle of the playoffs. This time, we had just gotten out [after being eliminated by the Golden State Warriors in the Western Conference finals] and it hurt to see the things that had happened in Charleston. It just broke my heart, because I just felt like that could’ve been me. It could’ve been my friends. It could’ve been my pastor. It could’ve been anybody. I wanted to be there and show my support, and just to show people that we need change in our society.”
If you look back beyond just this year, that “series of events” includes the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Trayvon Martin at the hands of neighborhood watch captain George Zimmerman in Sanford, Fla.; the shooting death of unarmed black teenager Michael Brown at the hands of police officer Darren Wilson in Ferguson, Mo.; the death of unarmed black man Eric Garner at the hands of police officer Daniel Pantaleo in Staten Island, N.Y.; the death of 12-year-old Tamir Rice at the hands of police officer Timothy Loehmann in Cleveland; the death of 25-year-old black man Freddie Gray after suffering a “significant spinal injury” while in the custody of Baltimore police; and the civil unrest that followed in each case.
In the wake of this “significant turmoil,” Howard, the son of an Atlanta-area police officer, launched his “Breathe Again” campaign. The effort’s aimed at helping find common ground and elusive peace in the increasingly contentious relationship between law enforcement and minority citizens.
“My mission [with ‘Breathe Again’] is to really just change people’s lives,” Howard told CNN. “[…] We need to step back, and take a look at ourselves and our lives, and if we want change, we need to be that change. We’ve got to have hope. We need some type of hope, some type of bright light to make us want to move forward. I just feel like there’s so much hate going around in this world that needs to stop. I just hate to see the things that have happened to our society because of hate. Hate cannot drive out hate. Only love can. I just want to spread as much love as possible to everybody around the world.”
That message was echoed loudly and clearly at Emanuel AME on Sunday, as the congregation came together for Sunday service to mourn its lost members and proclaim its intention to press on. From John Eligon and Richard Fausset of the New York Times:
“I want you to know, because the doors of Mother Emanuel” are open, the Rev. Norvel Goff Sr., a presiding elder in the African Methodist Episcopal Church, said in a rousing sermon there on Sunday, “it sends a message to every demon in hell and on earth.”
Later, with his voice roaring, Mr. Goff added, “Some wanted to divide the race — black and white and brown — but no weapon formed against us shall prosper.”
Here in this city — where steeples dot the skyline, earning Charleston the nickname Holy City — worship normally contained within church walls spilled into the streets on Sunday. Large banners hung from the buildings near Emanuel.
“Holy City … Let Us Be the Example of Love That Conquers Evil,” read one.
Howard is the latest in a growing number of NBA players speaking out on social issues, especially those related to violence against African Americans. New York Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony traveled to Baltimore to participate in a protest march following Gray’s death. Many NBA stars, including LeBron James, Derrick Rose and Kobe Bryant, wore “I Can’t Breathe” T-shirts in solidarity with those protesting Garner’s death. James and his then-teammates on the Miami Heat donned hooded sweatshirts in solidarity with the family and friends of Martin.
“It may be that we’re hearing more from players because this has been an especially active couple of years in terms of … issues that not surprisingly would get their attention,” National Basketball Players Association president Michele Roberts told Stanley Kay of Sports Illustrated. “It’s actually refreshing to see the players not merely be engaged in their business — and that is basketball — but to express themselves as members of our community.”
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Dan Devine is an editor for Ball Don’t Lie on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter!
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