Last Thursday, a gunman at Umpqua Community College in Oregon opened fire within the school, killing nine people and wounding seven others. A total of 13 weapons were retrieved from the shooter, six being at the school and another seven at the killer’s house. The suspect was heavily equipped with body armor, three pistols and a rifle when he was finally shot down by officers.

Stacy Boylan, whose daughter was wounded but survived the shootings, told reporters that his daughter described the gunman as having asked students their religion before shooting them. She said that the gunman asked, “Are you a Christian? And if you are a Christian stand up.” Boylan also reported that the gunman was heard to have said, “because you’re a Christian you’re going to see God in just about one second.”

Kortney Moore, an 18-year-old student who was on campus and witnessed the shootings, similarly reported that the shooter inquired into students’ religions before opening fire. Moore added that she was in the same classroom laying on the floor beside other students that had been shot, including the teacher who was killed.

News of this detail from the shooting sparked a social media movement in support of Christians. The hashtag “YesImAChristian” popped up throughout Twitter posts and profile pictures to honor those who died and were targeted in the shootings. Presidential candidate Ben Carson also joined in, posting a picture of him holding a sign that read in bold caps, “I AM A CHRISTIAN.” The photo of Carson has received over 800,000 likes and was shared over 100,000 times. Carson also encouraged others to change their profile pictures to an image with the slogan as a sign of support and encouragement.