On June 29, 2018, the editorial page of the Capital Gazette ran just 56 words, among them these: “Today, we are speechless. This page is intentionally left blank to commemorate victims of Thursday’s shooting at our office.”

The day prior in Annapolis, a gunman had stormed into the Capital Gazette building and gunned down five journalists. It was the deadliest attack on journalists in US history.

Six years have passed since the killing of Gerald Fischman, Rob Hiaasen, John McNamara, Rebecca Smith, and Wendi Winters. To commemorate these and other journalists who have lost their lives in service, a group of journalists, professors, activists, and others came together to spur construction of a memorial.