VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — Sept. 17 marks 126 years since two Black men were wrongfully murdered in Volusia County.

The Volusia Remembers Coalition held a special ceremony in Osteen on Saturday to remember and honor the lives of lynching victims.

Organizers say the idea behind this ceremony is to educate.

“We should not be afraid to talk about those things, and that is one of the concerns that I’ve had in the past. That there’s a strong effort to say, ‘Let’s not talk about it’,” explained Daisy Grimes, the ceremonies chair for the Volusia Remembers Coalition.

For three years, the organization has been hosting this ceremony honoring victims of racially charged violence.

Sitting at the front of Macedonia Missionary Baptist Church were jars of soil from where a man was brutally lynched in the county.

The coalition wants to help the community learn from its past to prevent the same mistakes in the future.

“But this group says, ‘Let’s talk about it,’ so we can face the ugliness and let us heal,” said Grimes.

Grimes’ roots in Volusia County date back to her years as a student at Bethune Cookman University, so she’s made it her responsibility to recognize those who came before her.

Even more than that, her work now serves as the voice for individuals who lost their lives to violence.

“Healing is so important.”

Charles Harris and Anthony Johnson were lynched in Volusia County on Sept. 17, 1896.

The two railroad workers were accused of a crime and killed the same day.

For those at the ceremony commemorating this day is a step towards making sure they are never forgotten.

“We have to be very intentional to build spaces like this,” explained Rajni Shankar-Brown, a Stetson University Professor & Endowed Chair of Social Justice Education. 

“To educate, to listen, to engage and stay civically engaged,” she continued.

Along with the special ceremony to reflect and remember victims of lynching, a moment was held for more recent victims of violence.

Another takeaway from the ceremony is that the county council recognizes Sept. 17 as Volusia Remembers Coalition Day.