A candlelight vigil or candlelit vigil is an outdoor

assembly Assembly may refer to: Organisations and meetings * Deliberative assembly, a gathering of members who use parliamentary procedure for making decisions * General assembly, an official meeting of the members of an organization or of their representa ...

of people carrying

candle A candle is an ignitable wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. A person who makes candle ...

s, held after sunset in order to show support for a specific cause. Such events are typically held either to protest the suffering of some marginalized group of people, or in memory of the dead. In the latter case, the event is often called a candlelight memorial. A large candlelight vigil will usually have invited speakers with a

public address system A public address system (or PA system) is an electronic system comprising microphones, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and related equipment. It increases the apparent volume (loudness) of a human voice, musical instrument, or other acoustic sound sou ...

and may be covered by local or national

media Media may refer to: Communication * Media (communication), tools used to deliver information or data ** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising ** Broadcast media, communications delivered over mass e ...

. Speakers give their speech at the beginning of the vigil to explain why they are holding a vigil and what it represents.

Vigil A vigil, from the Latin ''vigilia'' meaning ''wakefulness'' ( Greek: ''pannychis'', or ''agrypnia'' ), is a period of purposeful sleeplessness, an occasion for devotional watching, or an observance. The Italian word ''vigilia'' has become gener ...

s may also have a religious or spiritual purpose. On Christmas Eve many churches hold a candlelight vigil. Candlelight vigils are seen as a nonviolent way to raise awareness of a cause and to motivate change, as well as uniting and supporting those attending the vigil.

Candlelight vigils in South Korea

Movement for the resignation of Park Geun-hye in Masan Changwon-si Gyeongsangnam-do South Korea 20170225 1842

In South Korea, the Candlelight vigils, or Candlelight protests is a symbolic collective gathering of political dissent in

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula and sharing a land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed by the Yellow Sea, while its eas ...

to combat injustice peacefully. This method of protesting began in 2002 as a result of the

Yangju highway incident The Yangju highway incident, also known as the Yangju training accident or Highway 56 Accident, occurred on June 13, 2002, in Yangju, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. A United States Army armored vehicle-launched bridge, returning to base in Uijeongbu ...

, was utilized in the rallies against the impeachment of

Roh Moo-hyun Roh Moo-hyun (; ; 1 September 1946 – 23 May 2009) was a South Korean politician and lawyer who served as the ninth president of South Korea between 2003 and 2008. Roh's pre-presidential political career was focused on human rights advocacy for ...

in 2004, re-used again in the 2008 U.S. beef protests, and emerged in the 2016-18 President Park Geun-hye protests.

Gallery

File:22ndCandlelightVigil.NLEOM.WDC.13May2010.jpg, 2010

National Police Week Peace Officers Memorial Day and Police Week is an observance in the United States that pays tribute to the local, state, and federal peace officers who have died, or who have been disabled, in the line of duty. It is celebrated May 15th of each y ...

22nd annual candlelight vigil at the

National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is in Washington, D.C., at Judiciary Square, adjacent to the National Law Enforcement Museum. It honors 23,229 U.S. law enforcement officers who have died in the line of duty throughout American hist ...

Judiciary Square Judiciary Square is a neighborhood in Northwest Washington, D.C., the vast majority of which is occupied by various federal and municipal courthouses and office buildings. Judiciary Square is located roughly between Pennsylvania Avenue to the s ...

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

File:Kauhajoen koulusurma 28.jpg, A vigil in Kauhajoki,

Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

, one day after the September 23, 2008 shooting incident File:Candlelight Vigil for June 4 Massacre 2007 - 006.JPG, Every year from 1990 to 2019, people attend candlelight vigils on June 4 in

Victoria Park, Hong Kong Victoria Park ( zh, t=維多利亞公園, s=维多利亚公园, p=Wéiduōlìyà Gōngyuán) is a public park in Causeway Bay, Wan Chai District, Hong Kong. The park is named after Queen Victoria, who has a statue in the park. It is around in ...

commemorating the victims of

1989 Tiananmen Square protests The Tiananmen Square protests, known in Chinese as the June Fourth Incident (), were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square, Beijing during 1989. In what is known as the Tiananmen Square Massacre, or in Chinese the June Fourth ...

. It could no longer be held. File:Candlelight Virgil in Lourdes, France, 2013.jpg, A candlelight vigil in

Lourdes, France Lourdes (, also , ; oc, Lorda ) is a market town situated in the Pyrenees. It is part of the Hautes-Pyrénées department in the Occitanie region in southwestern France. Prior to the mid-19th century, the town was best known for the Châtea ...

References

External links

{{Commons category, Candlelight vigils
American Medical Students Association, ''Planning Candle Light Vigils''

"Example Candle Light Vigil for the Little Ambassador"
Candles Death customs Meetings Protest tactics

Candlelight vigils in South Korea

Gallery

See also

References

External links