--- description: Chris Singleton says he can forgive his mother's killer title: Charleston Shooting Victim’s Son Says Love Is Stronger Than Hate image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb808dead4be45241/69885559428a9e243dccdcdf/charleston-shooting-memorial-2.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [tragedy](/tag/tragedy/) ## tragedy Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Charleston Shooting Victim’s Son Says Love Is Stronger Than Hate by [Victor Luckerson](/author/victor-luckerson/) ## Victor Luckerson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 19, 2015 4:17 PM CUT  Mourners cast shadows on the walls and the makeshift memorial at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. on June 18, 2015. Mourners cast shadows on the walls and the makeshift memorial at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. on June 18, 2015.Brian Snyder—Reuters by [Victor Luckerson](/author/victor-luckerson/) ## Victor Luckerson Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 19, 2015 4:17 PM CUT The teenage son of Sharonda Coleman-Singleton, one of the nine people killed in a shooting at a historically black church in Charleston, S.C. Wednesday night, spoke Thursday about the loss of his mother. Chris Singleton, a student at Charleston Southern University and an outfielder for the school’s baseball team, spoke to reporters from the team’s baseball diamond Thursday night. He called his mother a “God-fearing woman” who loved everyone. Coleman-Singleton was a minister at Emanuel AME Church, the church that was attacked, as well as a speech pathologist and a track coach at a local high school. “Love is always stronger than hate,” Chris Singleton said. “If we just love the way my Mom would, the hate won’t be anywhere close to what love is.” Singleton also told NBC affiliate [WCBD](http://www.counton2.com/story/29357230/sharonda-singleton-remembered-as-many-things-to-many-people "undefined") that he would forgive Dylann Roof, the killer of the nine churchgoers. ### See Charleston Come Together to Mourn Church Shooting Victims  People sing "We Shall Overcome" during a service at Morris Brown AME Church in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images  The Rev. Sidney Davis leads mourners during a community prayer service for the nine victims of the shooting at the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, at Second Presbyterian Church in Charleston, S.C. on June 18, 2015. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images  Mourners gather outside Morris Brown AME Church for a vigil one day after a mass shooting in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. Brian Snyder—Reuters  Mourners hold hands as they pause outside Morris Brown AME Church during a vigil one day after a mass shooting in Charleston, South Carolina, on June 18, 2015. Brian Snyder—Reuters  Nine-year-old Liam Eller (R), helps officers move flowers left behind outside Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church after the street was re-opened a day after a mass shooting left nine dead during a bible study at the church in Charleston, South Carolina, June 18, 2015. Brian Snyder—Reuters  Kim Hamby, right, prays with her daughter Kayla, 4, as they lay flowers at a makeshift memorial down the street from where a church shooting killed nine people in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. David Goldman—AP  People sit on the steps of the Morris Brown AME Church while services are held one day after the church shooting in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images  People wait outside of Morris Brown AME Church while services are held in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. Brendan Smialowski—AFP/Getty Images  People gather outside Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church after the street was re-opened a day after a mass shooting left nine dead during a bible study at the church in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. Brian Snyder—Reuters  Reverend Al Sharpton visits the memorial site at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church where nine people were murdered in Charleston, S.C., on June 18, 2015. John Taggart—EPA  Mourners cast shadows on the walls and the makeshift memorial at the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in Charleston, S.C. on June 18, 2015. Brian Snyder—Reuters  Mourners light candles for the nine victims of the shooting at the historic Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church on June 18, 2015 in Charleston, S.C. Chip Somodevilla—Getty Images ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/"},"headline":"Charleston Shooting Victim’s Son Says Love Is Stronger Than Hate","datePublished":"2015-06-19T16:17:33.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:02:56.601Z","description":"Chris Singleton says he can forgive his mother's killer","url":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/","keywords":["tragedy","Crime","Charleston","Charleston shooting","Dylann Roof"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb808dead4be45241/69885559428a9e243dccdcdf/charleston-shooting-memorial-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Victor Luckerson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/victor-luckerson/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb808dead4be45241/69885559428a9e243dccdcdf/charleston-shooting-memorial-2.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Charleston Shooting","caption":"Charleston Shooting","creditText":"Brian Snyder—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/tragedy/","name":"tragedy"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/","name":"Charleston Shooting Victim’s Son Says Love Is Stronger Than Hate"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"Know Right Now: Alleged Charleston Shooter Arrested","description":"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.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/pAFOX8tB/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2015-06-18T08:44:08.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/pAFOX8tB.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/","duration":"PT1M1S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/3928385/charleston-shooting-victims-son/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```