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RICHMOND, Virginia, April 22, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – As the clock struck 11:00 a.m. in downtown Richmond, Virginia, the choir of car horns eclipsed the top-of-the-hour church bells. Thousands of Christians and conservatives from all over the Commonwealth protested in a vehicle gridlock at the #Reopen Virginia rally, which circled the Virginia State Capitol Wednesday morning. LifeSiteNews reported from the ground in the capital of the Old Dominion State and heard from citizens who made the trek from near and far to make their voices heard.
Inspired by the recent gridlock protests in Lansing, Michigan, and in North Carolina, the #Reopen Virginia rally originated last Thursday in a Facebook post by David Britt, who “proposed that we gridlock Richmond.”
He received comments that others were interested in the idea, so he decided to hold a conference call to discuss it, and in his words, “there you are!” He noted that based on the numbers, “the health of the Commonwealth was facing disaster.”
Small business owners, workers in “non-essential” businesses, and patients needing elective surgeries felt the same way. All gathered in their cars honking horns and holding signs demanding that Governor Ralph Northam reopen Virginia and do so soon.
Britt told LifeSiteNews that the target reopen date of June 10 is completely arbitrary.
“Not even New York has June 10th,” he noted.
One small business owner, Ed Cowdrey from Doswell, Virginia, whose business Castle Glen Estates Winery is reeling from the lockdown, lamented the fact that ABC stores are open but his winery had to close. He vehemently noted that the lockdown is destroying his small business, and he and his wife are now tapping into their life savings.
One woman with hydrocephalus spoke to LifeSiteNews saying she needs a brain surgery but cannot get one because it is an elective surgery. Many on the ground showed utter disgust over the fact that Planned Parenthood remains open for abortions, but life-saving surgeries are being postponed. “Yeah, not an abortion, we need brain surgery,” the woman's husband told LifeSiteNews.
Christian Virginians demanded that churches be reopened and abortion mills close. One woman shouted from her car that, “we need prayer now more than ever.” A group of five Christian women even walked the gridlock route seven times in prayer invoking the Holy Spirit and speaking in tongues. Their heartfelt prayer invoked the Lord and claimed Him as “Lord and King over all Virginia.”