--- title: Clementa Pinckney Funeral: Barack Obama to Deliver Eulogy description: President Obama will deliver the eulogy for Rev. Clementa Pinckney, who was killed in a church shooting in Charleston, S.C. canonical: https://time.com/3930966/barack-obama-clementa-pinckney-eulogy/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-06-22T19:52:57.000Z article:modified_time: 2023-12-13T06:15:09.000Z article:section: Politics og:title: Obama to Deliver Eulogy for Rev. Clementa Pinckney og:description: He'll travel to Charleston, S.C., for the funeral Friday. og:url: https://time.com/3930966/barack-obama-clementa-pinckney-eulogy/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt29cf17491063ff55/698855ae5f570fbcf4b1c1d6/clementa-pinckney1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Clementa Pinckney og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Obama to Deliver Eulogy for Rev. Clementa Pinckney twitter:description: He'll travel to Charleston, S.C., for the funeral Friday. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt29cf17491063ff55/698855ae5f570fbcf4b1c1d6/clementa-pinckney1.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Obama to Deliver Eulogy for Rev. Clementa Pinckney ## Video: Know Right Now: Alleged Charleston Shooter Arrested [Watch (HLS stream): Know Right Now: Alleged Charleston Shooter Arrested](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pAFOX8tB.m3u8) (1:01)  _Published 2015-06-18. A white man opened fire during a prayer meeting inside a historic black church in downtown Charleston on Wednesday night, killing nine people, including the pastor, in an assault that authorities described as a hate crime._ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:15 AM UTCPublished: Jun 22, 2015 7:52 PM UTC  Rev. Clementa Pinckney speaks from the pulpit during the Watch Night service at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina December 31, 2012. Rev. Clementa Pinckney speaks from the pulpit during the Watch Night service at Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, South Carolina December 31, 2012.Randall Hill — Reuters by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan Updated: Dec 13, 2023 6:15 AM UTCPublished: Jun 22, 2015 7:52 PM UTC President Obama and Vice President Joe Biden will travel to South Carolina for the funeral of [Rev. Clementa Pinckney](http://www.emanuelamechurch.org/revpinckney.php) on Friday, a White House official confirmed to TIME. President Obama will deliver the eulogy. The services for Rev. Pinckney, one of the nine victims of last week’s massacre at Emanuel A.M.E. Church in Charleston, will be held this Friday, according to the [_Post and Courier_](http://www.postandcourier.com/article/20150621/PC16/150629844/funeral-services-for-pinckney-to-be-held-this-week-at-emanuel-ame). Pickeney served as the senior pastor at the church, affectionately called “Mother Emanuel,” and was a Democratic state senator. Further details of the president’s travel will be released at a later time, but a White House official tells TIME First Lady Michelle Obama will also attend the services. The _Post and Courier_ first reported the news of the president’s travel. **Read Next:** [_The Pastor Killed in Charleston Had Been State Senator for 14 Years_](http://time.com/3926151/clementa-pinckney/) ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3930966/barack-obama-clementa-pinckney-eulogy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3930966/barack-obama-clementa-pinckney-eulogy/"},"headline":"Obama to Deliver Eulogy for Rev. 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