About 100 Say Their Names Memorial T-shirts removed from fence along bike path by Railroad Park
By Debora Gordon for Ashland.news
The Say Their Names Memorial was vandalized again sometime overnight Monday night, with dozens of T-shirts removed from the fence along the Central Bike Path by Railroad Park. It’s the sixth time the memorials been vandalized, and the second time in 2024.
The memorial was set up in 2020 by a woman who is an Ashland resident who wanted to be anonymous after George Floyd was murdered by a white police officer in May. She gathered a group of friends and they set it up in the middle of the night. It is called the “Say Their Names Memorial” because the T-shirts bore the names of Black and Brown people who died because of their color, including slain Ashland teen Aidan Ellison.

City Councilor Gina DuQuenne said the theft of more than 100 T-shirts either late Monday night or very early Tuesday morning “was very, very sad.
“Each time, the T-shirts have been torn down and sometimes they were just left on the ground or have been taken or, the last time, there were a few T-shirts in the trash, but most times they just tear them down completely and take them with them.”
It is not known who the vandals are, or if it has been the same person or persons each time.
DuQuenne notes that no matter how many times there is vandalism, the memorial will be replaced.
“We have replaced each individual’s name on the T-shirt (every time), and we’ve put every person up there and the last person to go on the Say Their Name Memorial was Sonya Massey, who was killed in her home by the police.
“Last night the shirts were ripped off the fence in their entirety to make their statement,” DuQuenne said Tuesday, adding, with emphasis, “But we cannot be removed.”
She said there will be a plan to restore the memorial. After receiving multiple texts early Tuesday morning, DuQuenne reached out to a couple of trusted friends, who are very much a part of the Say Their Name Memorial. “Right now we are grieving, and then we will put our heads together and we will take the next steps of what that will look like.”
DuQuenne concluded, “We cannot, and we will not, be removed. The Say Their Name Memorial is more than just a fence. And we will not be removed.”
Debora Gordon is a writer, artist, educator and non-violence activist who recently moved to Ashland from Oakland, California. Email her at [email protected].
Related stories:
Say Their Names memorial in Railroad Park rebuilt for fifth time (July 21, 2024)
Volunteers work together to replace Say Their Names T-shirts (April 3, 2023)
‘Say Their Names’ T-shirt memorial vandalized again, community responds (March 31, 2023)
Say Their Names memorial restored by community within hours of vandalism (Jan. 25, 2023)
Say Their Names memorial along fence at Railroad Park vandalized (Jan. 25, 2023)