The coastal city of Brunswick, Georgia, where Ahmaud Arbery was killed, is honoring the slain 25-year-old with a street sign.
“The hardest part is knowing he is no longer with me,” Arbery’s mother, Wanda Cooper-Jones, said at Tuesday’s unveiling.
Wanda Cooper Jones, the mother of Ahmaud Arbery, is held by her attorney, Lee Merritt, while addressing supporters gathered for the unveiling of new street signs honoring Arbery, Aug. 9, 2022, in Brunswick, Ga.
Russ Bynum/AP
“But I look at the change that Ahmaud has brought since his passing,” she said, citing Georgia’s new hate crime law and the repeal of the state’s 1863 citizen’s arrest law.
“I want to say thank you to the city of Brunswick for honoring my family, honoring Ahmaud,” she went on. “Because my only prayer is you guys will not forget his name.”
A crowd gathers under a new sign designating a city roadway as Honorary Ahmaud Arbery Street, Aug. 9, 2022, in Brunswick, Ga.
Russ Bynum/AP
Wanda Cooper-Jones poses for photos with supporters beneath a new street sign honoring her son, Ahmaud Arbery, that was unveiled, Aug. 9, 2022, in Brunswick, Ga.
Russ Bynum/AP
The crowd cheered as Honorary Ahmaud Arbery Street was uncovered and people chanted “Say his name! Ahmaud Arbery!”
The ceremony took place one day after the three white men convicted of federal hate crimes in connection to Arbery’s death received their sentences.
Gregory McMichael, 66, who chased Arbery, and his son, Travis McMichael, 36, who fired the fatal shot two years ago, were sentenced Monday to life in prison. The McMichaels’ neighbor, William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, who joined the chase and recorded video, was sentenced to 35 years.
Arbery was killed in Brunswick on Feb. 23, 2020. When the McMichaels saw Arbery jogging in their neighborhood, they chased him, falsely believing the Black man had been responsible for several break-ins. Bryan joined the chase in his own truck, blocking Arbery from escaping, and recorded video of Travis McMichael shooting Arbery after a brief struggle.
A painted mural of Ahmaud Arbery is displayed in Brunswick, Ga., May 17, 2020.
Sarah Blake/AP, FILE
Prosecutors released text messages and social media posts in which Travis McMichael and Bryan repeatedly used racist slurs. Witnesses also testified to hearing Greg and Travis McMichaels make racist comments.
Bryan and the McMichaels were already serving life in prison after being found guilty of state murder charges last fall. The McMichaels were sentenced to life without the possibility of parole while Bryan was sentenced to life with the possibility of parole.
ABC News’ Kiara Alfonseca contributed to this report.