And youre watching american tv where weve been airing a special series speeches that defined a presidency. We conclude the series this with barack obama. Well, it was shootings at Sandy Elementary School in connecticut in 2012. And a Mother Emanuel Ame Church in charles in South Carolina in 2015 that left the president and the nation grappling with sudden death and violence. Mr. Obama quotes from scripture in this speech and startles a tv audience by starting to sing the hymn amazing grace. Thank. Thank you, governor. To all families, First Responders to community of newtown. Clergy clergy. Guests. Scripture tells us. Do not lose heart, though outwardly. We are wasting. Inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light in. Momentary troubles are achieving. For us an eternal glory that far outweigh them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen temporary, but what is unseen is eternal, for we know if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from god, the turtle house, heaven not built by human hands. We gather here in memory. Of 20 beautiful children. And six remarkable adults. They lost their lives in a school that could have been any school. In a quiet town full of good and, decent people that could be any town in america. Here in newtown, i come to offer the love and prayers of a nation. I am very mindful that mere words cannot. The depths of your sorrow. Nor can they heal your wounded hearts. I can only hope it helps you to know that youre not alone in your grief grief, that our world, too has been torn apart. Then, all across this land of ours, we have wept with you. Weve pulled our children tight. And you must know that whatever measure of comfort we can provide, we will provide whatever portion of sadness that we can share with you to ease this heavy load. We will gladly. Newtown. You are not alone. As these difficult days have unfolded, youve also inspired us with stories of strength and resolve and sacrifice. We know that when danger arrived in the halls of sandy hook elementary, the schools staff did not flinch. They did not hesitate. Dawn hochsprung and mary sherlach. Vicki soto, lauren rousseau, Rachel Trevino and anne marie murphy. They responded as all hope we might respond in such terrifying. With courage. And with love, giving their lives to protect the children in their care. We know that there were other teachers who barricaded themselves inside classrooms and kept steady through it all and reassured their students by saying, wait for the good guys, theyre coming. Show me your smile. And we know that good guys came. The First Responders who raced to the scene helping to those in harms way to safety and comfort those in need holding at bay their own shock and their own trauma because they had a job to do and others needed the more. And then there were the scenes of the schoolchildren helping one another holding each other dutifully following instructions in the way that Young Children sometimes do. One child even trying to encourage a grown up by saying, i know karate, so its okay. Ill lead the way out. As a community, youve inspired us. Newtown in the face, indescribable violence in face of unconscionable evil. Youve looked out for each other. Youve cared for one another. And youve loved one another. And this is how newtown will be remembered. And with time and gods grace, that love will see you through. But we as nation, we are left with hard questions. You know, someone once described the joy and anxiety of parenthood as equivalent of having your heart outside your body all the time, walking around. With their very cry, this most precious, vital part of ourselves, our child is suddenly exposed to the world. Its a possible mishap or malice malice. And every parent, theres nothing we will not. To shield our children from. And yet we also know that with that childs very first step and each step after that, theyre separating from us. That we wont that we cant always be there for them. Theyll suffer sickness and setbacks and broken hearts and disappointments. And we learned that our most important is to give what they need to become selfreliant and capable and resilient, ready to face the world without. Fear and know we cant do this by. It comes as a shock at a certain where you realize no matter how much love these kids you cant do it by yourself. That this job of keeping our children safe and teaching them well is something can only do together with. The help of friends the neighbors. The help of a community, and the help of a nation. And in that way, we come to realize that we bear responsibility for every because were counting on everybody else to help look after ours. Now were all parents that theyre all our children. This is our first task. Caring for our children. Is our first job. If we dont get that right, we dont get anything right. Thats how as a society will be judged. And by that measure, can we truly say as a nation that were meeting our obligation. We honestly say that were doing enough to our children, all of them safe from harm. Can we claim as a nation that were all together . Theyre letting know that theyre loved and teaching them to and return. Can we say that were truly doing enough to give all the children of this country the chance they deserve, live out their lives in happiness and with. Ive been reflecting on this the last few days, and if were honest with ourselves the answer is no. Were not doing enough, and we will to change. Since ive been president , this is the fourth time we have come together to comfort a grieving torn apart by mass shootings. For weve hugged survivors before time. Weve consoled the families of victims. And in between there have been an endless series of deadly shootings across the country. Almost daily reports of victims, many of them children in small towns, in big cities all across america, victims whose much of the time their only fault was being in the wrong place at the wrong time time. We cant tolerate this anymore. These tragedies must end. And to end them, we must change change. We will be told that the causes of such violence complex. And that is true true. No single law, no set of laws can eliminate evil from the world or prevent every senseless act. Violence in our society. But that cant be an excuse for inaction. Surely we can do better this if there is even step we can take to save another child or another parent or another town from the grief thats visited tucson and aurora and oak creek and newtown and communities columbine to blacksburg. Before that and. Surely we have an obligation to try. In the coming weeks, use whatever power this office holds to my fellow citizens from Law Enforcement to Mental Health professionals, parents and educators in an effort at preventing more tragedies like this. Because what choice do we have. We accept events like as routine. Are we really prepared to say that were powerless in the face of such carnage. That the politics are too hard. Or are we prepared . Say that such violence visited on our year after year after year is somehow the price of our freedom. All the worlds. So many of them represented here today start with a simple question. Why are we here . What our life meaning. What gives our purpose. We know our on this earth is fleeting. We that we will each have our share of pleasure and pain. That even after chase, after some earthly, whether its wealth or power, fame or just simple comfort, we will, in some fashion, fall short of what we hoped. We that no matter how good our intentions will all stumble sometimes in some way well make mistakes. Well experience hardships. And even when were trying to the right thing, we know that much of our time will be spent groping the darkness. So often unable to discern gods heavenly plans. Theres only one thing we can be sure of. And that is the love that we have. For our children, for our families. For each other, the of a small childs embrace. That is true. The memories we have of them, the that they bring, the wonder we see through their eyes that fierce and boundless love we feel for. A love that takes out of ourselves and binds to something larger. We know thats what matters. We know were always right when were taking care of them. And when were teaching them, well, we when were showing acts of kindness, we dont go wrong. When we do that. Thats what we can be sure of. And thats what you, the people of newtown, have reminded us. Thats how youve inspired us. You remind us what matters and. Thats what you drive us forward in. Everything we do for as long god sees fit to keep us on this earth. Let the little children come to me. Jesus said, and do not hinder them for such belongs the kingdom of heaven. Charlotte. Daniel daniel. Olivia. Josephine. Anna dylan. Madeline. Katherine. Chase. Jesse james. Grace. Emily. Jack. Noah. Caroline. Jessica. Benjamin. Ava. Leo. Allison. God has called them all home. For those of us who remain. Let us find the strength to carry on and make our country worthy of their memory. May god bless and keep those weve lost in his heavenly place. He grace those we still have with his holy comfort. And may he and watch over this community and the United States of america. Giving all praise and honor to god. The bible calls to hope, to persevere persevere and have faith in not seen right. They were still living by faith when died. Scripture us. They did not receive the things promised. They only saw them and welcomed them from a distance. Admitting they were foreigners and strangers on earth. We are here today to remember a man of god lived by faith and a man who believed in things not seen. A man who believed there were better days ahead. Off in the distance. A man of service persevered, knowing full well would not receive all those he was promised. Because he believed his efforts would deliver better life for those who follow. To jennifer his beloved wife, juliana milana, his beautiful, wonderful. To the mother emmanuel family, and the people charleston and the people of south. I cannot claim to have had the good fortune to reverend pinckney. Well, but i did have the pleasure of knowing him and meeting him here in South Carolina back when we were a little bit younger. Back when i didnt have visible gray. The first thing i noticed was his graciousness. His smile is reassuring. Barrett on his deceptive sense of humor. All quality is that help to him where effortlessly a heavy burden of expectation. Friends of his remarked this that when Clementa Pinckney entered the room it was like the future arrived, that even from a young age, folks knew he was special anointing. He was the progeny of a long line of the faithful, a family preachers who spread gods word. A family of protesters who so changed. Expand Voting Rights and desegregate the south. Clem heard their instruction, and he did not forsake their teaching. He was in the pulpit by 13, pastored by 18. Public servant by 23. He did not exhibit any of the coquina of youth nor use insecurities. Instead, he set an example worthy of position wise. His years. In his speech and his conduct and his love faith and purity as senator, he represented a sprawling swath of the lowcountry, a place that has been one of the most neglected in america. The place still wracked by poverty and inadequate schools. A place where children can still go hungry and the sick can go without treatment. A place that needed somebody like clem. His position in the Minority Party meant. The odds of winning more resources for his constituents were often long. His calls for greater equity were too often. The votes he casts were sometimes. But never gave up. He stayed to his convictions. He would not grow discouraged after. A full day at the capitol. Hed climb into his car and head to the church to draw sustenance from his family family, from his ministry, from the community that loved and needed him. There he would fortify his. And imagine what might be. Reverend. Pinckney embodied a politics that was neither mean nor small matter. He conducted himself quietly and kindly and diligently. Yet he encouraged progress. Not pushing his ideas alone by seeking out your ideas ideas, partnering with you to make things happen. He was full of empathy and fellow feeling, able to walk in somebody elses and see through their. I met the wonder one of his Senate Colleagues remembered senator pinckney the most gentle of the 46 of us, the best of the 46 of us. My mind. Clem was often asked why he chose be a pastor and a public. But the person who probably didnt know the history the ame church right. As our brothers and sisters in the church know. We dont make those distinction right in our calling. Clem once said is not just within the walls of the congregation but the Life Community in which our resides. Right. We embody the idea that our Christian Faith demands deeds and not just words that the sweet our prayer actually lasts the whole week long. Right. Lets put our faith in action as more than just individuals. Its about our collective salvation to feed the hungry and, clothe the naked, and house the homeless is not just to call for isolated charity, but the imperative of a just society. Right. What a good man. Sometimes i. I think thats the best thing. Hope for when youre eulogized and. After all the words and recitations and resumes are read to just say somebody was a good man. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. You dont have to be a power station to be a good man. No, no. All right. Preacher by 13. Pastor. By 18. Public servant, a 23. What a life. Clementa pinckney lived. What an example. He set. What a model for his faith. Right. And then to lose him. At 41, slain in his sanctuary. He with eight wonderful members of his flock since said each at different stages in life, but bound together by a common commitment to god. Cynthia, Susie Jackson at the lance the payne middleton. Dr. Tywanza sanders. Daniel earl simmons. Sharonda coleman singleton. Myra thompson. A good yeah decent people god people. Yeah but. People so full of life and so full of kindness. People ran the race. Yes. Who persevered. People of great. To the families of the fallen the nation shares in your grief. Our pain cuts that much deeper because it happened in a church right. The church and always been the center of africanamerica life. A place to call our own in a too often hostile world a sanctuary from many hardships over course of centuries. Black churches served as hush harbors where slaves worship in safety, praise houses where theyre descendants could gather and shout hallelujah. Rest stops for the weary along the underground railroad bunkers, the footsoldiers of the Civil Rights Movement right . They have been and continue to be Community Centers where. We organize for jobs and, justice, places of scholarship and network places where are loved and fed and out of harms way and told that they are beautiful and smart and taught that they matter. Thats what happens in church. Thats what the black church means, our heart, the place where our dignity as a people is inviolate. And theres no better example of this tradition than mother emanuel. We have a church. A church built, blacks seeking liberty burned the ground because its founders sought end slavery, only to rise up again. A phenix from these. When there were laws banning all black Church Gatherings services happened here anyway in defiance of unjust laws right when there was a righteous to dismantle jim crow. Dr. Martin luther king preached from its pulpit and marches began from its steps. A sacred place this church not just for blacks, not just for christians but for every american. Who cares about the steady expansion of human rights and, Human Dignity in this country, a Foundation Stone for liberty and justice for all. Thats what the church meant. We do not know whether the. Of reverend pinckney and eight others knew all of this history. But he surely sensed the meaning of his violent act act. It was an act that drew on along history of bombs and arson and shots fired at churches. Not random numbers but as a means of control, a way to terrorize at a press. And act that he imagined would incite fear and recrimination, violence and suspicion. An act that he presumed would deepen divisions that trace back to our nations original sin by law. All but god works in mysterious ways. Yet god has different ideas. And he didnt know was being used by god. Oh. Blinded by hatred the alleged killer could not the grace surrounding reverend pinckney and that Bible Study Group where the of love that shown as they the church doors and invites a stranger to join in their prayer circle. The alleged killer could have never anticipated the way the families of the fallen would respond when they saw him in court. In the midst of unspeakable grief with words of forgiveness, he couldnt imagine that. An. Alleged killer could not imagine how the city of charleston, under good and wise leadership of mayor riley. How the state of South Carolina, how the United States of america would respond, not merely with revulsion at his evil act, but with big hearted generosity and more, with a thoughtful introspection and selfexamination that we so rarely see in public life. Yeah. Blinded by hatred, he failed to comprehend reverend pinckney so understood the power of gods grace. Yes. This whole week ive been reflecting on this idea of grace. The grace of the families who lost loved ones. Yeah, yeah. The grace that reverend pinckney would preach about in his. The grace described in one of my favorite hymnals, the one we all know amazing. How sweet the sound. That saved a wretch like me. I once was lost but now im found was blind but i lost it. And. Now. According to the christian tradition, its grace is not earned outside. Grace is not merited. Its not something deserve. Rather, graces the free and benevolent favor of god. As manifested in the salvation of sinners and the bestowal of blessings blessings, grace. As a nation out of this terrible tragedy. God has visited grace upon. For he has allowed to see where weve been blind. Hes given us the chance where weve been lost to find our best selves. We may not have earned this grace with our rancor and complacency and. Shortsightedness and of each other, but we got it all the same. Yes, he gave it to us anyway and hes once more giving us grace. But it is up to us now to make the most of it. To receive it with gratitude, and to prove ourselves worthy of this gift. For too long we were blind to the pain that the Confederate Flag stirred in too many of our citizens. And not its true. A flag did not cause these murders. But as people, all walks of life, republicans and democrats now acknowledge, including governor haley, whose recent eloquence on the subject was worthy of praise. As we all have to acknowledge the flag has always represented more than just ancestral pride. Thats the. Man who, for many black and white right that was a reminder of systemic oppression and subjugation. We see now. Yeah. Removing the flag from the States Capital would not be act of political correctness. It would not be an to the valor of confederate soldiers. It would simply be an acknowledgment that the cause for which they fought the cause of slavery was wrong. Well. And. The imposition of jim crow after civil war, the resisting force to civil rights. All people was wrong. It would be one step in an honest accounting of americas. A modest but meaningful balm for so many unhealed wounds. It would be an expression of the amazing changes that have transformed this state and this for the better, because of the work of so many of goodwill people of all races, striving form a more perfect union. Yeah. By taking down that flag, we express gods grace. But i dont think god us to stop there. For too long weve been blind to the way past injustices continue shape the present thats right. Perhaps we see that not. Perhaps this causes us to ask some tough questions about how we can permit so many of our children languish in poverty or attend dilapidated schools or grow up without for a job or for career, perhaps causes us to examine what were doing to cause some of our children, to hate. Perhaps it softens hearts towards those lost young men tens and tens of thousands caught up in the criminal system and lead us to make sure that that systems infected with bias. That we embrace changes in. We train and equip our police so that the bonds of trust between enforcement and the communities they serve make us all safer, more secure. Maybe we now realize the way racial bias can infect us, even when we dont realize it. So that were guarding against not just racial slurs, but were also guarding against the subtle impulse. Call johnny back a job interview, but not jamal. So that we search our hearts when we consider laws to make harder for some of our fellow citizens to vote. By recognizing our common humanity, by treating every child as important regardless of the color of their skin or the into which they were born, and to do whats necessary to make opportunity real for every american. By doing that, we express gods grace. For too long. For too long weve been blind to the unique mayhem that gun violence inflicts upon this nation. Sporadically. Our eyes are open. When eight of our brothers and sisters are cut down in a church basement. My mom, 12, in a movie theater, 26 in an elementary school. But i hope we also see the 30 precious lives cut short by gun violence in country every single day. The countless whose lives are forever changed, the survivors cripple the children and fearful every day they walk to school. The husband who will never feel his wifes warm touch. The entire community, his overflows every time they have to watch what happened to them. To some other place. The vast majority americans, the majority of gun owners want to do something about this. We see that now. Yeah. And im convinced that by acknowledging the pain and loss of others even as we respect the traditions, ways of life that make this beloved country by making the moral choice change, we express gods grace in many. We dont earn grace well. Were all sinners. We dont deserve it. But god gives it us anyway, right . And we choose to receive it. How . Its our decision. How to honor. All right. None of us can or should expect a transformation in Race Relations overnight. But every time Something Like this happens, somebody says, we want to have a conversation about race. We talk a lot about race. Theres no shortcut. We dont need talk. And none of us should believe that a handful of gun safety will prevent every tragedy will not people of will continue to debate the merits of various policies as our democracy requires us. Theres a big raucous place america is, and there are good people, both sides of these debates, whatever solutions we find, will necessarily be incomplete. But it would be a of everything reverend picnic stood for, i believe, if we allowed ourselves to slip into a comfortable silence again. Youre right. Once the eulogies have been delivered, once the tv cameras move on to go back to business as usual right. Thats what we so often do. To avoid uncomfortable truths about the prejudice thats infects our society. To settle for symbolic without following up with the hard of more lasting change. Thats how we lose our way. It would be a refutation of the forgiven as expressed by those families if we merely slipped into old habits whereby those who disagree with us are not merely wrong but bad and where we shout instead listen where we barricade ourselves behind preconceived or a well practiced cynicism. From picnic once said across the south we a deep appreciation of history. We havent always had a deep appreciation of each others history. What is true in the south is true for america. Clem understood that. Justice grows of recognition. Of ourselves in each other. That my liberty depends on you being free to. That. That history cant be a sword to justify injustice or a shield against progress, but must be a manual for how to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past, how to break the cycle a roadway toward a better. He knew that the path of grace involves an open mind, but more importantly, an heart. Thats what i felt this week. An open. That more than any particular policy or analysis says. Thats right is whats called upon right now. I think what a friend of mine, the writer marilynne robinson, calls that reservoir of goodness beyond and of another kind that we are able to do each other in the ordinary of things that reservoir of goodness, if we find that grace, anything is possible. If we can tap, that grace, everything can change. All right. Im not. Amazing grace. Amazing grace. I may may the grace. How sweet he is. That say. Oh, ray edge, find me. Oh. One. By. Clemente pitney found that grace cynthia hurt, that grace Susie Jackson found that ethel lance found that grace the pain middleton doctor found grace i once ascend has found that grace daniel elfmans senior found that grace to run home and singleton that grace palmer found that grace through the example of their lives they now pass it on to us when we find ourselves worthy of that precious and extraordinary gift. As long as our lives endure, may grace now lead them, will may god continue to shed his grace on the United States of america. Well thank you for joining American History tv for our series speeches defined the presidency a reminder that all of the speeches in this series are available to watch at cspan dot org. Slash