Plan a Trip to WaterFire Providence this Season on Sunday, September 3, for a special gathering to reaffirm the importance of the RI Holocaust Memorial at 7:15pm. The names of many RI survivors have just been added to the Memorial.
September 3rd, 2017 – Full Lighting event activities begin on Washington Street at 6:00 p.m. See below for more details. The Jewish Alliance will join WaterFire with a special gathering to reaffirm the importance of the RI Holocaust Memorial at 7:15 p.m.
With the recent situation in Charlottesville and a deeply alarming rise in hate speech and intolerance across our country, we wanted to take this opportunity to show our entire community’s resolve to honor the original commitment of Roger Williams — to make our state a peaceful haven for all those persecuted for reasons of conscience.
In addition to pledging to never forget the tragedy of the Holocaust, we are inviting all members of our community including those active in civil rights and those who are from refugee, immigrant, and persecuted communities to join us in a silent observance of our commitment that hatred will never be accepted in Rhode Island.
As the sun sets on Memorial Park, we will gather to form a circle of solidarity around the entire Holocaust Memorial. WaterFire will play music from the Native American, Afro-American, Armenian, Jewish, and Cambodian communities to underscore that protecting the peoples and cultures of our world requires our commitment and dedication, as it must be a constant vigil. We invite everyone to join us for this simple, silent evening, to make a statement that hatred will not be allowed in our state. We will also have representatives from many of these communities on the boats setting WaterFire alight that night.
Please join us in Memorial Park at 7:15 p.m. on Sunday, September 3, for this special gathering to reaffirm our community’s commitment to engaged respect and tolerance for all. Please share this invitation with others and come with peace in your heart. If you have a flag from your homeland that you wish to display, please bring it with you — so that we can honor the many nations who contribute to the strength of our state. You are invited to pass through the RI Holocaust Memorial and leave a glass pebble on the life stone as an expression of your resolve to never forget.
Sponsored by the Providence Tourism Council
WaterFire Providence® is an independent, 501(c)3 non-profit arts organization whose mission is to inspire Providence and its visitors by revitalizing the urban experience, fostering community engagement and creatively transforming the city by presenting WaterFire for all to enjoy. This award-winning sculpture by Barnaby Evans installed on the three rivers of downtown Providence, has been praised by Rhode Island residents and international visitors alike as a powerful work of art and a moving symbol of Providence’s renaissance. WaterFire’s over eighty sparkling bonfires, the fragrant scent of aromatic wood smoke, the flickering firelight on the arched bridges, the silhouettes of the firetenders passing by the flames, the torch-lit vessels traveling down the river, and the enchanting music from around the world engage all the senses and emotions of those who stroll the paths of Waterplace Park. WaterFire has captured the imagination of over ten million visitors, bringing life to downtown, and revitalizing Rhode Island’s capital city.
