Interfaith Vigils Across Ohio
Read the report about ending ICE jail in Ohio and watch Mustapha’s video. Access data about each ICE detention center. Planning a vigil? Download the toolkit.
Between May 23 and May 30, communities across Ohio are coming together for a statewide week of interfaith vigils in solidarity with people held in civil immigration detention (a.k.a. ICE jail). Faith leaders, organizers, and community members will raise their voices, hold space for reflection, and stand in collective action. This coordinated week of action calls for:
An end to ICE detention
Transparency on detention facility funding
An end to 287(g) agreements
There will be vigils outside all six ICE jails in Ohio. Vigils may include interfaith prayers, brief speaking programs, and peaceful reflection with signs and candles. Attend a vigil near you, or organize one in your own area to be part of this statewide effort!
Below are details about local events. Email hotline@ohioimmigrant.org to add your vigil.
Learn about the movement to end ICE jail in Ohio here, and see what “life” is like inside by watching these videos.
Seneca County Jail - May 23 (1pm, meet 11:30am)
4winds419 is hosting “Voices for the Detained: Ohio Interfaith Vigil – Seneca County” on Saturday, May 23, from 1-3pm. The vigil will take place at the SCAT grass across the street from the Seneca County Jail in Tiffin (3040 S. State Route 100). Participants are welcome to attend for the full two-hour window or as their schedules allow.
All attendees must meet and park at Hedge Boyer Park (491 Coe St, Tiffin) at 11:30 AM. There is no parking we can use at the jail. If you can offer a ride or need a ride, fill out this form. Want to volunteer in other ways? Fill out this form.
Additional details at this Instagram post.
Mahoning County Jail - May 28 (6pm)
Youngstown Area Interfaith Prayer Group will hold a prayer vigil at Mahoning County Jail on May 28th at 6pm as part of the statewide week of action. Bring signs against ICE in our jail, and for immigrants' rights to due process.
Geauga County Jail - May 28 (7pm)
Like-Minded in Lake County is hosting a vigil at the Geauga County ICE jail on May 28th from 7-8:30PM. The vigil will include interfaith prayers, brief speaking programs, and opportunities for peaceful reflection with signs and candles. Your presence is vital as we stand in collective action for justice and compassion. Info and RSVP here.
Northeast Ohio Correctional Center - May 30 (1pm)
At 1pm, people of faith, interfaith clergy, and allies will gather in the gravel lot just north of the NEOCC jail in Youngstown in prayer, song, and reflection, to demand that all detained immigrants and people seeking asylum receive their due process rights — including the right to legal and spiritual counsel while detained. It is a simple demand: all detained immigrants and people seeking asylum MUST receive their constitutionally-protected due process rights.
The vigil is organized by the Youngstown Area Interfaith Prayer Group, the Interfaith Group Against Hate (Cleveland), and the We Are Many, We Are One Coalition (Cleveland) as an expression of their continued advocacy of both the rights of immigrants and the moral imperative to stop the for-profit prison system’s abuses and ties to ICE.
Butler County Jail - May 30 (3pm)
Please join Butler County Immigrant Justice, the Task Force on United Methodist Immigration Ministries of Ohio, the Interfaith Center at Miami University, Ignite Peace, the Amos Project’s Black Women’s Health Initiative, the Coalition for Concerned Citizens, and the Miami Valley Immigration Coalition for a peaceful interfaith prayer vigil from 3-5pm on May 30. We will stand in solidarity with people held in ICE detention in the Butler County Jail and throughout the United States, with signs and candles. Find us on the sidewalk and public space outside the Butler County Jail (705 Hanover Street, Hamilton).
In addition to the core demands outlined above, we are calling for in-person/contact visitation for clergy seeking to care for ICE detainees in the Butler County Jail.
The Task Force on United Methodist Immigration Ministries of Ohio believes that we must welcome the stranger and treat migrants, asylum-seekers, refugees, and immigrants as our native-born citizens. E.g., Leviticus 19:33-34, Matthew 25:35. We oppose all laws and policies that attempt to criminalize, dehumanize, or punish displaced individuals and families based on their immigration status. Additionally, we decry all immigration policies that separate families, undermine due process, detain noncitizens in for-profit detention centers, and diminish protections for asylum-seekers and other vulnerable migrants. See The Book of Discipline of The United Methodist Church, ¶ 163(G).
Corrections Center of Northwest Ohio - May 30 (4pm)
Gather at 4pm outside of the jail for an interfaith vigil.
Planning a vigil? Download the toolkit.