Remembering the Mother Emanuel AME Church tragedy – June 16, 2023

Dear MUSC family,

Tomorrow will mark the eighth year since the senseless killing of nine African American parishioners during their Bible study at the Mother Emanuel AME Church, less than 3 miles from our Charleston campus.

The effects of this tragedy remain with many of us; grief and healing are very personal, individual experiences that ebb and flow over time. For our communities and many of our MUSC family members, the trauma of this event and its memory have never gone away. Their lives are marked equally by moments of clarity and happiness as well as pain and sorrow.

We care about the impact of these types of events on each of you and also want to remind you that the MUSC Resiliency Program, Employee Assistance Program, Student Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) and Pastoral Care Services all offer resources for individualized help for those seeking comfort during this time.

Regardless of your role within the MUSC enterprise, we believe that recognizing this tragedy provides an opportunity to reflect on what you can start or continue to do to serve as a courageous supporter in the fight against racism and racial violence.

Yours in service,

David Cole, M.D., FACS, President

Lisa Saladin, PT, Ph.D., Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

Patrick Cawley, M.D., CEO, MUSC Health and Executive Vice President for Health Affairs, University

Willette Burnham-Williams, Ph.D., Chief Equity Officer