Vigil For Immigration Reform Organized By Kingstowne Faith Leader

KINGSTOWNE, VA—On Saturday, June 30, cities around the U.S. will hold rallies the federal policy separating families at the border. One of the rallies in the spotlight will naturally be in front of the White House. About 13 miles away in the Northern Virginia suburbs, a different kind of gathering will happen.

Kingstowne Communion, a United Methodist Church, is organizing a candlelight vigil at Kingstowne Towne Center at 8 p.m. The vigil will be held in the grassy area in the middle of the shopping center.

Rev. Michelle Matthews, the church's leader and vigil organizer, told Patch in a phone interview that Christian faith leaders mutually oppose the family separation policy. "There's nothing in the sacred text that advocates for the separation of families."

So when she saw rallies happening in other areas of the state but not Northern Virginia, she decided to organize a vigil. She says the event will be "distinctly Christian" but is open to people of all faiths. She hopes to get interfaith leaders and local state representatives involved. (For more information on this and other neighborhood stories, subscribe to Patch to receive daily newsletters and breaking news alerts. If you have an iPhone, click here to get the free Patch iPhone app; download the free Patch Android app here.)

Despite Kingstowne not being as much of an immigrant-heavy community as the neighboring Richmond Highway corridor, the immigration issue has resonated close to home. Kingstowne Communion works with Rising Hope United Methodist Mission Church, where ICE arrested men leaving the church's hypothermia shelter last year.

Matthews hopes to bring the community together and raise awareness for "copassionate immigration reform" in a community that's predominately upper middle class and white. "I think people in suburbia care about it but don't want to traverse in the city," she said.

While President Trump's Wednesday executive order will end the family separations, Matthews tells Patch the vigil will go on with prayer and reflection for immigration reform. The president's executive order did not change the administration's "zero-tolerance" policy on illegal immigration, and it remains to be seen whether Congress will pass immigration reform solving the family separations and Trump's proposed border wall. Two Republican bills will be considered Thursday, NBC News reports.

See more about the Kingstowne Vigil here.

Image via Shutterstock