The Black Lives Matter Greenwood organization is planning a prayer vigil Saturday in memory of those lost to gun violence and police brutality.
It will begin at 5 p.m. at the downtown pavilion off Johnson Street.
Activist and organizer Robert Wilson Jr. said this will be an open-speaker event with time allotted to those who have lost someone close to them due to gun violence or want to speak on police violence.
“I’m organizing this event because our Black community is hurting,” Wilson said. “We’re in a state of emergency battling racism, gun violence in our neighborhoods and an international public health crisis with COVID.”
Prayer is important in difficult times, he said: “As a person of faith, I see a need to come together as a community and pray to a higher power that better days are to come for our community.”
He said he hoped the gathering would draw at least as many people as a demonstration against police injustice that was held outside City Hall in June. About 100 people attended then.
Wilson said that he is encouraging everyone to wear face masks and practice social distancing as much as possible.
