Staff reports  |  Architect Michael Arad revealed design plans July 15 for a permanent memorial honoring the victims of the 2015 shooting that left dead nine members of Emanuel AME Church on Calhoun Street.

Arad, the architect behind the National September 11 Memorial in New York, conveyed his inspiration for the Emanuel Nine Memorial at the church following a ceremony celebrating its 200th anniversary.

“The inspiration for this memorial draws on Mother Emanuel A.M.E. Church as a historic place and as a congregation,” Arad said in a statement.  “Throughout its 200-year history, it has endured slavery, discrimination and racism. When worship and assembly were banned, the church resisted and provided a place of fellowship and sanctuary.