Say Their Names memorial honoring Black lives lost to social injustice comes to Hoboken

A nationwide tribute to Black lives that were lost has come to Hoboken.
The Say Their Names memorial contains 225 names and faces of Black lives lost to racism, social injustice or police brutality.
“It should be shocking. It is shocking,” says coordinator Nikki Sude. “I had people ask if it repeats itself. It absolutely does not.”
Sude says that the goal of the tribute is to honor the lives that were lost, spark a conversation and reflection and to educate those who pass by the memorial. It is an evolving memorial. Names will be added as incidents of injustice happen and as the public learns of others that may have already happened.
“There are names and faces there that no one has ever seen or heard of. Our goal is to get those names and faces in front of as many people as possible and also so everyone can see how expansive this unfortunately is,” Sude says.
The memorial was first created in Portland, Oregon and similar displays have popped up in cities across the U.S. The Hoboken memorial is believed to be the first one in New Jersey. Everyone involved are volunteers.
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“Everyone can connect with these people. They are just human beings. And learning about all these ways we can prevent in the future is important and that’s what this is all about,” says Sude.
The Hoboken Say Their Names memorial is located along the Hudson River waterfront on Sinatra Drive through Sept. 7. Organizers, coordinators and volunteers say that they would like to extend the date and eventually find a way to make the memorial permanent.
The floral arrangements along the memorial were donated by local florists A Pedal for a Peddle and Bloom & Park.