President Obama delivering the eulogy of State Sen. Rev. Clementa Pinckney

President Obama delivering the eulogy of State Sen. Rev. Clementa Pinckney

Speaking to over 5,000 mourners gathered inside of the TD Arena in Charleston, South Carolina, and millions of people watching live across the country, President Barack Obama, in giving the eulogy of the slain State Sen. Reverend Clementa Pinckney, facilitated what can only be described as one of the most unique moments in presidential history. To have a man speaking to a family, an audience and a nation so devastated by hate, who has actually experienced it himself, was a powerful sight never before seen with any American president.

After honoring the wife and children of the Rev. Pinckney, President Obama, the first African-American president in the history of our nation, masterfully paid a beautiful tribute to Pinckney while simultaneously critiquing the racist past and present struggles of the United States. Leaning on an Amazing Grace motif throughout his 30-minute eulogy, Obama made it clear that while grace is a beautiful thing, what we do with our lives and our grace is what honors God the most.

It was in this, the meat of his eulogy, where Obama called for the Confederate flag to come down, called for the end of employment discrimination, called for the end of unjust policing and prison sentencing, and called for the end of excessive dialogues on race without substantive change. Perhaps a singular highlight in this refrain was his comparison of how Johnny gets a call-back for job interviews when Jamal doesn't.

Even though president had been previously heard singing a little Al Green in the past, he shocked all in the audience when he closed his message, very much in the black church tradition, by singing "Amazing Grace."

See the full video and some live tweet highlights from the eulogy below.