Community leaders, families, and faith partners will gather at Richmond City Hall on Monday, Jan. 19 for the Bay Area Unity Vigil, a response to recent killings by ICE agents.
Held on Martin Luther King Jr. Day from 2-3 p.m., the gathering will call for an end to state violence against children and families and is organized by the Freedmen Federation and Faith In Action East Bay.
The vigil features a program of prayers, poems, and songs and will include remarks California education advocate Zelon Harrison, Professor Kira Lee and Richmond Councilmember Claudia Jimenez.
“You cannot invoke the name of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. without naming hate and state violence as the public health crises still killing Black, Brown, and LGBTQ+ parents today,” said Professor Lee. “Dr. King himself was a parent, a spouse, a community leader—and ultimately a victim of the same state-sanctioned gun violence that murdered Renee Nicole Good and Keith Porter Jr.”
A central focus of the Richmond event is the public launch of the 2026 Justice in Education strategy, a community-led plan intended to transform schools into places of safety rather than surveillance. This regional plan advocates for specific changes, including increased investments in school facilities and infrastructure alongside better access to culturally responsive counselors and service providers. The strategy also calls for the implementation of training that centers on student wellbeing and the removal of law-enforcement practices that have historically harmed black and brown families.
The event is free and open to the public. Those interested in participating can RSVP through the official registration form or find more details on the event’s Facebook page.
