On March 21st, 2026, we held our first Romero Vive Festival at St. Stephen’s Iglesia in Columbia Heights. In honor of the life and memory of Monsignor Óscar Romero, the event brought local communities together to celebrate his powerful legacy of advancing justice and dignity. Through education, art, and collective joy, the Romero Vive Festival aimed to continue Romero’s dedication to being a voice for the voiceless and speaking out against oppression.
The festival featured three roundtables where community leaders discussed current issues impacting local communities. The first roundtable held an empowering discussion surrounding immigrant life, fear, and resilience in the DMV. Following this conversation, a new panel of speakers further discussed local issues such as institutional fragility and criminalization, as they highlighted the power of collective strength amidst such injustices. The third and final roundtable examined the emotional, social, and spiritual impact of deportation and the importance of solidarity in navigating its effects as a community. Along with the powerful discussions facilitated at the roundtables, the festival also featured a very informative resource fair. This fair consisted of a wide range of organizations that are each taking important action in uplifting local communities and sparking real change.
Throughout the festival’s educational elements, there was also food, music, murals of resistance, children’s activities, and people forming important connections with the common goal of bringing justice and dignity to their communities. The festival concluded with powerful musical performances that artistically amplified the movement, bringing culture and community to the center of the stage and into a shared space of collective joy and dance. Overall, the 2026 Romero Vive Festival beautifully honored the memory and legacy of San Romero by unifying people across the DMV and taking important action towards addressing the issues facing our communities. We hope that it is the first of an annual festival that grows bigger each year so that we can continue building unity and advancing justice on an even greater scale.