Peaceful Vigil Mourning Recent Violent Deaths Held In Newtown

Peaceful organizers from around the area gathered at a popular Newtown Borough intersection Tuesday evening for a vigil and discussion to mourn the recent deaths of Alton Sterling, Philando Castille, and the five officers killed last week during a Dallas protest.

The vigil, which took place at the corner of Centre and State streets from 6 to 7 p.m., brought out about four dozen or so residents who proudly donned hand painted and homemade signs in support of peace for all. The vigil was organized in part by Langhorne Borough-based The Peace Center.

“Violence ultimately hurts all of us, and we each have a responsibility and a role in interrupting the cycle. The first step in transforming some of the intense pain we are witnessing right now – pain which has gone ignored for far too long – is to listen to one another: to listen to our neighbor’s experience of pain, of discrimination, of fear. We must learn to love one another by first hearing one another, and attempt to realize how deeply interconnected we all are,” said The Peace Center in a recent release.

“It was very upsetting to see all the violence on the news and to see police officers who 99 percent are probably good police,” she said. “I think it’s important to stand up for equal rights for everyone,” participant Doreen Boerner-Gage said.

Elizabeth Bush of Newtown Township said she is in support of the civil rights group, Black Lives Matter. She believes in ending violence. “It feels really good being out here,” she said. “I’m glad everyone’s coming together and trying to end negativity.”

Loraine Myers of Langhorne Borough said she was at the event because of what happened in Dallas and all over the world. “It’s insane!” she said.

She was a little girl during the 1960s and the Civil Rights movement. “It’s 2016 and were taking a giant step backwards,” she said. “You think you have come so far that people want to live in peace and harmony but there is unrest.”

Adam Nolan, 21, of Dayton Beach, Fla. was visiting family here. “It feels exciting — I wanted to be a part of something like this. I think a lot of people in my generation don’t feel like standing for anything.”

Among the participants at the event was Bob Anderson of Lower Makefield. He is the head of advocacy for peace and justice at St. Andrew’s Church in Yardley Borough.

“We need a different approach in this country – listening to each other, being less angry, building community and just finding ways to get along better,” he said. “We can’t keep going at 47-percent against 47 percent. We can’t keep giving up on each other. How we do things is important as what we’re doing. We need to model peacefulness in order to seek peacefulness.”

After the event at the busy intersection, participants walked about two blocks to the Newtown Friends Meetinghouse. Everyone paired off to listen to one-another.

“People left with feeling more hopeful as a result of the dialogue,” said Barbara Simmons, executive director of The Peace Center.

 

The group also helped organize a peaceful vigil in Langhorne Borough following the mass shooting in Orlando.