Charlottesville victim Heather Heyer’s mother: “They tried to kill my child to shut her up. Well, guess what: you just magnified her.” pic.twitter.com/qplRC8g2lc
— CNN (@CNN) August 16, 2017
Hundreds of people attended a memorial service on Wednesday for Heather Heyer, the 32-year-old woman who was tragically murdered at a rally in Charlottesville over the weekend by a white nationalist who mowed through a crowd of counter-protesters. Her memorial takes place just a day after Donald Trump stood before reporters and defended white nationalists, making sure to take the time to brag about how Heyer’s mother, Susan Bro, said “the nicest things” about him.
Bro didn’t have anything to say about the president, nice or otherwise, while speaking at her daughter’s memorial, however she did have some powerful words for the group ultimately responsible for her death. After remembering Heather’s caring, compassionate, and outgoing personality, Bro said, “I think the reason that what happened to Heather has struck a chord, is because we know what she did is achievable. We don’t all have to die. We don’t all have to sacrifice our lives.”
She continued, “They tried to kill my child to shut her up. Well, guess what — you just magnified her.”
Bro’s words were met with thunderous applause and a standing ovation from those in attendance. It’s difficult to imagine such stoicism in the wake of needless tragedy, but as Bro concluded her speech, she said, “I’d rather have my child, but by golly, if I gotta give her up, we’re gonna make it count.” With any hope, that will indeed be the case.
You can watch Bro’s full speech below:
https://twitter.com/ShaunKing/status/897863243254726656