An “Evanston Community in Lament Gathering” at Second Baptist Church, 1717 Benson Ave., on June 15 drew a crowd of about 375 people in solidarity with the 49 men and women who were gunned down at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando, Fla., earlier this month.
A flyer for the gathering listed the names and ages of those who were killed.
It was an evening of ecumenism and unity, with Christian, Jewish, and Muslim leaders speaking or leading prayers from St. Nicholas Roman Catholic Church, the Unitarian Church of Evanston, Second Baptist Church, Beth Emet the Free Synagogue, Immanuel Lutheran Church, Northwestern University’s Muslim community, and the Dar-us-Sunnah mosque.
The refrain for the Litany of Remembrance for the victims of the massacre was “Let us stand together against violence, terror, hatred and division.”
Reverend Dr. Michael C.R. Nabors, pastor at Second Baptist, said, “Leave with a plan of action. Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. … The greatest action word in the English language is love.”
Rabbi Andrea London of Beth Emet the Free Synagogue said: “Leave with a determination that you’re going to spread your horizons … realize that we are all citizens of the world, of the universe.”
— Story by Heidi Randhava and Mary Gavin; photo by Heidi Randhava