Ahmaud Arbery memorialised a year after killing sparked movement

Arbery’s family and friends say his memory should be celebrated but his death remains ‘painfully fresh’.

Tuesday marks the first anniversary of the day Ahmaud Arbery was killed by two white men armed with guns as he ran through their neighbourhood in Georgia, and those close to Arbery are planning a vigil to memorialise and celebrate his life. Arbery’s killing occurred as the United States was settling into COVID-19 lockdowns. Authorities questioned the three white men involved in Arbery’s killing, but little happened for more than two months until a national outcry erupted after cellphone video of the shooting leaked online on May 5. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation took over the case the next day and quickly arrested the shooter, Travis McMichael, his father, Greg McMichael, and neighbour Roddie Bryan, on murder charges.