Caravan for Peace candlelight vigil planned for Aug. 26

The national "Caravan for Peace with Justice and Dignity" will hold a candlelight vigil on Sunday, Aug. 26 at 1409 Sul Ross St.    This group of travelers, led by Mexican poet Javier Sicilia, hopes to raise awareness about the failed drug war and its 70,000 victims, according to a press release.   The caravan will travel more than 6,000 miles across the United States to share the stories of the people who have died as a result of the war.    "Our purpose is to honor our victims, to make their names and faces visible," Sicilia said in the press release. "We will travel across the United States to raise awareness of the unbearable pain and loss caused by the drug war — and of the enormous shared responsibility for protecting families and communities in both our countries."   Demonstrators call for a peaceful, binational solution to, what they say is, the longest and deadliest war in U.S. history.    "Whether we realize it or not, we are all affected by Mexico's failed drug war," Jos Eduardo Sanchez, Houston activist, said in the press release. "Here in Houston and across the U.S., our families are disintegrated and left unstable by mass incarceration and our communities are ravished by insecurity and threat of violence. It's time we hold our nation's policies accountable for the suffering on both sides of the border and demand justice for all of our communities."   Organizers invite residents to attend the Town Hall meeting, which will take place at 3 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 26 at St. Paul Methodist Church, located at 5501 Main St. in Houston.    The candlelight vigil will begin at 8 p.m. at Rothko Chapel, located at 1409 Sul Ross St. in Houston.    To learn more about the Caravan for Peace, visit www.caravanforpeace.org.