Leaders of different faiths came together Thursday evening for a common message of peace, unity and change during an interfaith vigil held on Valparaiso’s courthouse square.
Hundreds of people wearing masks because of the COVID-19 pandemic gathered and held the signs increasingly common at rallies and protests across the region and the nation in light of the death May 25 death of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police: “Black Lives Matter,” “White Silence is Violence” and “Stop the Hate.”
Speakers gave up on an unreliable megaphone and let their passion carry their message to the crowd, sometimes pausing because of the rumble of motorcycles and other traffic along Lincolnway. At one point, a vehicle drove by blaring the national anthem.
But sounds from outside the vigil could not overtake those that came from within, as religious leaders used biblical allegories common to many faiths to accentuate their points and referenced more than once the “peach skin” of many of the people in the community where the vigil took place.
Before the final prayer, offered by Erika Robinson-Watkins of New Mission of Jesus Christ Church in East Chicago, participants held up their cellphones with the flashlights ablaze.
“Before I pray, I have to say I am really overwhelmed by what’s happening now, and it’s not what’s happening in this country but here, because I feel like you’re here for me,” Robinson-Watkins said, as those in the crowd said, “We love you.”
Robinson-Watkins, who admitted she was “a crybaby,” fought back tears as she shared her story. Raised in Lake County, she told her husband he had to be crazy to move to Porter County. The move, nine years ago, was “the best thing we every did,” she said.
She worried about her son, who wears long braids and prefers hoodies. “But now I understand his support system is greater than I thought it was,” she said.
Vigil organizer Debbie Fray, a retired Valparaiso High School teacher, spoke briefly at the start and end of the event. The people at the vigil, she said, came to bear witness.
“We can do better. We have a job,” she said. “We have got to change hearts.”
A couple of the faith leaders used the story of Cain and Abel, and God’s questioning of Cain after he kills his brother. The Rev. Rich Schmidt, with Living Hope Community Church in Valparaiso, said there were “so many parallels” between that story, his own life and the situation today, including the message that everyone is their brother’s keeper.
Being a “non-racist” and thinking that not using certain words or telling certain jokes is not the same as being “anti-racist” and speaking up when someone else does so, Schmidt said.
“God knows what I have and have not done. God knows what I have and have not thought,” he said. “Love is the way.”
Likewise, Rabbi Shoshana Feferman with Temple Israel-Valparaiso, noted the police officers who stood by and did nothing to stop Floyd’s death as he complained that he couldn’t breathe. She quoted Leviticus, “Do not stand idly by while your brother bleeds.”
“According to Jewish belief, we are all brothers and sisters who were created in the image of God,” she said. “We must all be treated the same, with respect, equality and dignity.”
The vast majority of police officers are good people who risk their lives to protect others, Feferman said. In the face of the tragedy of Floyd’s death, though, she saw hope.
“I see how we have all come together, black and white, Christians, Muslims, Jews and others to reject hatred, violence and this senseless act of murder,” she said. “Tonight, we are not standing idly by.”
Those attending the vigil hoped to raise awareness of and ultimately put a stop to police brutality.
Kathleen McKenzie, pastor at Bethel Presbyterian Church in Union Mills, held a sign that said, “You are a beloved child of God. Remember.” She came to a May 30 protest held in downtown Valparaiso as well.
“I am concerned that racism is sin and we need to call it out whenever and wherever we witness it,” she said, adding she hoped that the events she attended would “raise awareness and also motivate people to take action.”
Amy Lavalley is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
