The Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church has a long history of persevering against racial persecution, CNN reports.
The congregation began as members of Charleston's Methodist Episcopal Church in 1791, but withdrew over disputed burial grounds under the leadership of Morris Brown and the African Methodist Episcopal Church.
In 1821, Denmark Vesey, one of the church's founders and a former slave, began organizing a slave riot in Charleston but was thwarted when authorities were informed of the plot. The church was burned to the ground in retaliation.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The congregation rebuilt the church in 1834 during a period when all-black churches were outlawed; worship was held in the basement until 1865, when it was reorganized under the name "Emanuel," meaning "God with us."
The church was destroyed a second time, by an earthquake, in 1886 and once again rebuilt. Today, the Emanuel AME seats 2,500 congregants, making it the largest capacity of any African-American church in Charleston. The Emanuel AME was also a stop in the 1960s for many civil rights movement leaders, including Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.
-
Critics’ choice: Watering holes for gourmandsFeature An endless selection of Mexican spirits, a Dublin-inspired bar, and an upscale Baltimore pub
-
Argentinian beef is at the center of American farmers’ woesThe Explainer ‘It feels like a slap in the face to rural America,’ said one farmer
-
‘Businesses that lose money and are uncompetitive won’t survive’Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
France makes first arrests in Louvre jewels heistSpeed Read Two suspects were arrested in connection with the daytime theft of royal jewels from the museum
-
Trump pardons crypto titan who enriched familySpeed Read Binance founder Changpeng Zhao pleaded guilty in 2023 to enabling money laundering while CEO of the cryptocurrency exchange
-
Thieves nab French crown jewels from LouvreSpeed Read A gang of thieves stole 19th century royal jewels from the Paris museum’s Galerie d’Apollon
-
Arsonist who attacked Shapiro gets 25-50 yearsSpeed Read Cody Balmer broke into the Pennsylvania governor’s mansion and tried to burn it down
-
Man charged over LA’s deadly Palisades Firespeed read 29-year-old Jonathan Rinderknecht has been arrested in connection with the fire that killed 12 people
-
4 dead in shooting, arson attack in Michigan churchSpeed Read A gunman drove a pickup truck into a Mormon church where he shot at congregants and then set the building on fire
-
2 kids killed in shooting at Catholic school massSpeed Read 17 others were wounded during a morning mass at the Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis
-
Australian woman found guilty of mushroom murdersspeed read Erin Patterson murdered three of her ex-husband's relatives by serving them toxic death cap mushrooms
