Vidas Robadas Memorializes Harris County Victims

Rev. Diane McGehee with staffers from Council Member Kamin's office and Congresswoman Fletcher's office in front of several t-shirt memorials.

Earlier this month, Bering Church became the first congregation in Houston to participate in Texas Impact’s gun violence prevention campaign, Vidas Robadas/Stolen Lives. Bering Church, headed by Rev Diane McGehee, is a long-time Texas Impact member with a history in social justice reaching back to the ‘70s. Bering has continued to be a bulwark of justice through its affirmation of LGBTQ+ rights, work with migrants, and most recently hosting a Vidas Robadas installation.

On March 3rd, in partnership with Texas Impact and The Metropolitan Organization (TMO), Bering dedicated an installation of 200 t-shirt memorials that either name or represent Houstonians whose lives were stolen by gun violence in the past 5 years. In total over 4,100 Harris County residents have died from gun violence since 2018. Local officials turned out to show their support – staffers from the offices of Houston Council Member Abbie Kamin and US Congresswoman Lizzie Fletcher attended and Texas Representative Ann Johnson made an appearance and shared a few words. Bering’s Vidas Robadas installation was covered by Outsmart Magazine.

Vidas Robadas is Texas Impact’s state-wide initiative confronting the reality of gun violence and advancing policy change. Vidas Robadas provides an opportunity for congregations to help their communities visualize the lived experience of gun violence. Featuring t-shirt memorials to local victims, Vidas Robadas centers the gun violence conversation around lives stolen by gun violence. Vidas Robadas demands that viewers confront the individual tragedies of gun violence, rather than hiding behind policy jargon and statistics.

Bering is the first of five planned Vidas Robadas installations in Houston with more on the way. They join a group of installations that are traveling around San Antonio as well as the first wave of installations popping up in Austin, Dallas, and Fort Worth. See examples from our ongoing installations in San Antonio.

Through 2024, Vidas Robadas installations will continue to be displayed all over Texas in partnership with local officials, advocates, and diverse communities of faith. In 2025, we will bring all the t-shirt memorials from across Texas to the State Capitol, so legislators can see the cost of their inaction. With an annual average of about 4,000 Texans dying from gun violence, it’s imperative that lawmakers take action.

Vidas Robadas offers congregations a concrete opportunity to inform, inspire, and mobilize their communities. If Vidas Robadas might be a good fit for your congregation, sign up for more information or reach out to Texas Impact at bobby@texasimpact.org.