Jackson Lee says U.S. is ‘a nation with heart’
Prayer vigil promotes ‘spiritual uplift’ after dividing election cycle
Calling the previous 48 hours “an amazing journey” for the country, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee summoned community leaders Sunday to pray for unity.
The Houston Democrat, along with Bishop James Dixon II of The Community of Faith Church, convened the midday prayer vigil in north Houston to promote “spiritual uplift” to heal national divisions that were aggravated by the bruising 2016 election cycle.
Flanked by scores of church members who packed the spacious pulpit and choir stand after morning service, Dixon and Jackson Lee led the room of religious, social and diplomatic leaders in song and prayer, peppered with short speeches urging people to pray for lawmakers to keep children’s futures in mind and for world stability.
“The world that we live in needs compassion. It needs more tolerance,” Pakistani Consul General Aisha Farooqui told attendees. “The world that we live in needs more healing. And that’s what we pray for: Let there be more compassion, let there be healing in the world, let us all come together for prosperity, peace and for happiness for all faiths, for all people.”
Islamic Society of Greater Houston President and former City Councilman M.J. Khan,
Imam Mohammed Wasim Khan, poet A.J. McQueen and Michelle Moto, pastor of New Life Seventh Day Adventist Church, were among the speakers with Farooqui. Lee said she wanted Sunday’s representation to reflect diversity.
“What the world loves about America the most is they look to America as a place with a heart,” Jackson Lee told attendees. “This new administration, working with Congress, cannot undermine what has been the definition of America from her birth — that she is a nation with a heart, ready to care not only about her citizens but ready to care about the world.”
Matter of conscience
Jackson Lee is a senior member of the House Judiciary Committee and a ranking member on the crime, terrorism, homeland security and investigations subcommittee. She was one of six Texas Democratic congressional representatives who did not attend Friday’s inauguration of President Donald Trump. She participated Saturday in the Women’s March in D.C.
In a statement the day before the inauguration, Jackson Lee said her absence was not a boycott but a matter of conscience. She added in her statement that she will attend Trump’s State of the Union address. After Sunday’s vigil, she told reporters she’ll listen closely to what Trump says in that address, his first major direct message to the country.
The Houston Democrat expects some of the first issues will include repeal of the Affordable Care Act without a replacement insurance plan, immigration policy, revamping Medicare and Medicaid and the budget. Jackson Lee hopes to get bipartisan support for juvenile justice reform.
‘Join us peacefully’
People should view this past weekend’s marches as “hope” and remain engaged with their members of Congress, she said.
“We’ll fight what is wrong, and they should join us peacefully,” Lee said. “There is hope by their very presence and their voices.”
Sunday’s vigil was one of countless events around the country that have been organized during the weekend in response to Trump’s inauguration. On Saturday, women’s marches organized across the country drew more than 20,000 protesters to Houston’s Hermann Square, according to estimates. More than 1 million people participated in similar events worldwide.