Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg posted Sunday night on the social network he co-founded that he stopped in Charleston over the weekend, attending a service at Emanuel AME Church and meeting with local leaders.
In the post tonight, the Silicon Valley billionaire praised the local community for the tone of unity after Dylann Roof’s racially-motivated mass murder in the basement of the prominent downtown church in 2015, saying “we have a lot to learn from Charleston and Mother Emanuel.”
“The community still has issues,” Zuckerberg says, saying he “heard stories” about a black child in a biracial family who is repeatedly stopped by local police.
No names were mentioned besides Emanuel Rev. Eric Manning, but Zuckerberg said he also met with local religious, law enforcement, city, and non-profit leaders over dinner Saturday night.
Zuckerberg’s trip to Charleston comes as the Havard-educated 32-year old who oversees the hugely influential social network says he wants to visit all 50 states in 2017. In recent weeks, Zuckerberg has made stops across the South, including in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. The trip has sparked speculation that Zuckerberg, who is the world’s fifth-richest man, has political ambitions. A 6,000 word missive on “Building Global Community” last month makes clear that at least to some extent, Zuckerberg’s focus may be on an even higher than the White House.
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