What follows is my immediate reaction the evening I went to the Aurora Century 16 Memorial. This was shortly after I had moved into the city in Early August. Since September 20th The city of Aurora shut down the memorial, and put almost all the items into storage. A handful of items are on display in the entry of the Municipal building, but they are static and empty. Nothing new can be added, and the people of Aurora are left with an empty plot of land that can be developed now, instead of something that was living and healing.
THE MEMORIAL
BY
Mark G Richards
Early this evening I went to the memorial. What memorial you ask? Well I don't mean the Lincoln Memorial, I am no where near Washington D.C. And it wasn't the Arizona Memorial in Hawaii, either.
No, I am talking about a memorial that before July 20th of this year did not exist.
I am referring to the memorial to those who were brutally killed at the Aurora Century 16 movie theater.
People were stunned by this bizarre killing. A killing that was deliberate and senseless.
People responded. Votive candle, oceans of them, stuffed animals signs and placards... one stating that "Aurora Still Stands"
Wind spinners, photos of the dead, art work flags and tee shirts. From children to adults, there was no age barrier divided those who contribute, or those who visit.
The Memorial is a living and growing thing.
Will it stop?
Maybe... sometime sometime when wounds heal, justice is served and when some other tragedy makes us forget what we should not.
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