Mayor Libby Schaaf was among dozens in attendance Sunday night at a prayer vigil in Oakland aimed at helping people deal with the grief, anger and fear over rising racial tensions gripping the country.
"It's been a horrible week because we’ve seen our fellow man do things he should not do," Schaaf told the gathering at Beebe Memorial Cathedral. "We will be a strong voice in this country in making the changes that need to come."
The service comes after fatal police shootings in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and St. Paul, Minnesota, as well as the apprent retaliatory fatal shootings of five police officers in Dallas.
The anger spilled into the streets and onto highways during peaceful and heated protests in those places and others across the nation -- including Oakland -- over the past week. In St. Paul, a protest turned violent Saturday as 21 law enforcement officers were injured by thrown rocks, bottles, firecrackers and other objects.
At the Oakland vigil, there were prayers, songs and a moment of silence, and for some a sense of resolve at the end.
