Dozens attend Bend vigil to honor Portland attack victims
Dozens of people attended a “Vigil Against Hate” held Monday evening at Drake Park to honor the three men who intervened and defended two young women on a Portland light-rail train, two of whom were fatally stabbed and a third seriously injured.
Here’s the announcement sent to NewsChannel 21 by Indivisible Bend, which urged everyone to bring one flower that was placed at the front of the gathering, below a sign honoring the three men:
Our vigil in Bend, OR is a tribute to all the people who lost their lives standing up against hate. We will commit to honor the lives and actions of Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche and Ricky John Best, who lost their lives, and Micah Fletcher, who remains hospitalized for defending two young women — one of whom was wearing a hijab.
Our vigil recognizes that hate comes in all forms from seemingly insignificant slights to insults shouted at individuals to brutal acts of violence and loss of life. There were at least three individuals on Friday evening in Portland, OR with the courage to speak out on a crowded train and say no to hate.
It’s time for us to take a stand now and refuse to let hate escalate.
“There may be times when we are powerless to prevent injustice,
but there must never be a time when we fail to protest.”
-Elie Wiesel, writer, Nobel Laureate
If you wish, you can make a personal contribution to help allay Micah’s medical costs at Tri Met Hero Recovery and you may contribute to Tri Met Heroes to help ease the financial burden for the families of Rick and Taliesin. Both of these GoFundMe campaigns have been validated by GoFundMe.
