A prayer vigil at Wichita’s St. Paul African Methodist Episcopal Church took place Thursday afternoon in response to the shooting at an AME church last night in Charleston, South Carolina. KMUW’s Carla Eckels reports.
Dozens of ministers, civic leaders and community members attended the vigil, praying for the families of the victims killed while attending bible study at the historic EmanuelAMEChurch in Charleston, South Carolina.
"Something is wrong. The world is just in a bad way right now when these types of things happen," said Rev. Joseph Nixon, pastor of St. Paul AME Church. "You would think a safe haven would be the church. But now we're seeing the church is not even safe."
Several AME churches throughout the nation are also holding prayer vigils in the wake of the slayings. A suspect, 21-year-old Dylann Roof, was arrested in connection with what officials are calling a hate crime.
Nixon says any contributions to aid the South Carolina Church will be collected and delivered .
This piece originally aired June 18, 2015, during All Things Considered.