Carson: ‘Heart Aches’ For Charleston Victims, Fears Rise Of ‘New Hate’

Republican presidential candidate Ben Carson speaks at the Freedom Summit, Saturday, May 9, 2015, in Greenville, S.C. (AP Photo/Rainier Ehrhardt)
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Dr. Ben Carson, a 2016 Republican presidential candidate, said Thursday in a Facebook post that his “heart aches for the families of the victims” of a mass shooting that occurred at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C.

Carson’s post came after a violent attack Wednesday on the Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church by a white man, identified as Dylann Roof, left nine black people dead.

“Last night evil walked the streets of Charleston,” Carson wrote. “My heart aches for the families of the victims. I pray for the families left behind. I pray for the community scared and hurting. I also pray you and I can conquer hatred.”

Carson mentioned “racial based hate” and a “new hate” that was becoming pervasive in America.

“Racial based hate is still very much alive as last night so violently reminded us. But I worry about a new hate that is growing in our great nation,” Carson wrote. “I fear our intolerance of one another is the new battle ground of evil. Today many feel it is ok to hate someone who thinks differently than you do. The left hates the right. The right hates the left. This attitude is poison. Poison that will sicken all of us.”

Carson also referenced his former career as a pediatric neurosurgeon.

“As a brain surgeon I can assure you that all of our brains look the same, no matter what our skin color or party affiliation,” Carson wrote.

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