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On May 11, 2024, the historic city of Kumasi came to a halt as former Asante Kotoko chairman Herbert Mensah led a memorial march through its streets. The multitudes gathered to mark 23 years since the Accra stadium disaster – one of the darkest tragedies in African football history.

As crowds converged from all corners, young and old, able and disabled, men and women, they moved as one unified force gripped by purpose. Inspired by Mensah’s continued efforts to honor the 126 lives horrifically lost on May 9, 2001, Kumasi’s residents streamed forth in solidarity.

The solemn yet resolute procession wove its way through the bustling city’s iconic roadways and sprawling neighborhoods. Every step echoed with the lingering sorrow of that fateful night, but also the hope that sprang from Mensah’s heroic actions and humanitarian work since.

From the humblest residents to the highest echelons of traditional power, all came together on this day of remembrance. For crisis and calamity, much like triumph, bear no prejudice and spare no creed when visiting a nation’s people.

As the march culminated at the revered Manhyia Palace, each pair of feet seemed to move in cadence with those lost lives – carrying their memories forward into the streets of a Kumasi that vowed never to forget.

The following images capture the powerful scenes that unfolded