It has been nearly a month since the Lapu Lapu Day tragedy. Mourners from all over Metro Vancouver have gathered to pay their respects to the victims of the attack at memorials located around the city. These temporary memorials have provided areas of grieving for those who have lost their family and friends, and to the affected Filipino communities.
With the City of Vancouver’s recent decision to combine these memorials, many feel that it comes far too soon after the attack.
CONSOLIDATION
These memorial sites are integral and significant sites of mourning. For numerous people, they have become an important step in the healing process by gathering with their community and collectively grieving. Flowers and candles, notes and stuffed animals, and every piece of tangible support you can think of are housed at these memorials.
A small city staff team will begin combining some of these temporary sites together on Thursday, May 23. This includes areas such as the ones on St. George Street, 41st Avenue and Fraser Street, and 44th Avenue and Fraser Street. The items located at these memorials will either be moved or stored.
The City of Vancouver says that it plans not to touch the 43rd Avenue and Fraser Street memorial, but will inform the attack’s affected people if there will be any changes.
CONCERNS
Many people have voiced their concerns over the City of Vancouver’s decision to consolidate the memorials. As this tragedy is still in its infancy, the grief is still very poignant for its victims. To move any memorials, the organization Filipino BC believes that it should only be done with care and after speaking to the affected families.
Filipino BC has since expressed to the city that there are many community members that feel this consolidation will do more harm than good. Having dedicated spaces assists mourners in their grief, and it is simply too early to be touching these sacred places that people have been gathering at for the past month.
The moving of the memorials comes due to keeping streets and sidewalks accessible, though the city plans on having this move be caring, considerate, and supportive. The Mountain View Cemetery has since been noted as an interim memorial site.
If you would like to offer your support to the victims of the Lapu Lapu attack, you can donate to their GoFundMe pages, or even donate blood.
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