About 100 people from Haitian, Hispanic and white congregations gathered Sunday afternoon in Albertville for a prayer rally the organizers said was about healing divisions in the community and forging bonds.

Billed as an evening without speeches or politics, people sat in lawn chairs or stood with Bibles, bowing their heads and holding pieces of paper with prayer requests dealing with needs in schools and in the community.

“I think this a positive movement for our community, trying to organize, because we need that right now,” said Jeff Lamour, a Haitian resident of Albertville and businessman. Lamour was one of the event’s organizers.

“It’s a moment of healing in our community, and we all need to be more united. Just people. Just us and Jesus.”

At least 10 churches were represented at the event, which was the latest in a series of community gatherings sparked following a controversy that first played out on social media dealing with immigration.

In August, photos of Haitian immigrants in Albertville being bused to and from work at a poultry processing plant prompted questions about who the people were and where they came from, leading to what city officials called “baseless accusations, and hurtful rhetoric.”

This resulted in a series of community meetings and the formation of a non-profit.

Immigrant workers have been a focus of residents’ concerns in Athens and Sylacauga, with city officials facing questions about the effect on crime, school overcrowding and housing.

Officials in both Albertville and Athens say Haitian immigrants make up a small percentage of the population, and they have seen no increase in crime since larger amounts of immigrants began arriving this year following unrest on the Caribbean island.

See also: Haitian immigrants fleeing unrest and facing exploitation find ‘Alabama is the best place to live’

Chris Johnson, pastor of nearby Albertville First Baptist Church, said the event was part a “grassroots movement.”

“There are definitely people that feel differently about the situation in our community, but there are so many of us who want this to be a place of peace, where people are welcome to come and lay down roots, and be the family that God has called us to be,” Johnson said.

“In our personal life, we are connected to our Haitian friends and our Hispanic friends in a strong way. And there are lot of people in our city as well. There are some here who are trying to learn a new culture and figure that out, but there are a lot of positive things happening here too.”

Lamour said he is currently involved in organizing efforts to teach recent Haitian immigrants English, as well as working to translate the Alabama driver’s manual into Creole. He said some immigrants obtain Florida driver’s permits – either by buying them or paying another person to take the driver’s test.

“We want to reeducate people to integrate people into our community,” he said.