Mass Shooting in Buffalo

On Saturday, 18-year-old white man, Payton Gendron, opened fire at a Buffalo supermarket, especially targeting the Black community, killing ten and wounding three others. The suspect was from New York, who purportedly wrote a racial statement online, traveled about 200 miles to the store, and live-streamed the attack. Prior to attacking the innocent, the gunman made disturbing statements describing his intention. The statements were clear and filled with hate toward the African-American community. Investigators also revealed other information about the shooter who was "studying" previous hate attacks and shooting.

Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia stated a day after the attack that it was a racist hate crime and will be prosecuted as such. "The evidence that we have uncovered so far makes no mistake that this is an absolute racist hate crime. It will be prosecuted as a hate crime, he said. "This is someone who has hate in their heart, soul and mind."

The attack bears similarities to a number of mass shootings in recent years that were motivated by hate, including the shootings at two mosques in Christchurch, New Zealand, in 2019.

A hate crime is when prejudice leads to a violent act and these tragedies can tear communities apart. In the countless racial assaults that have occurred in the past half-century, the tale is one of unending abuse. As Americans, we are deeply saddened by the atrocity that happened in Buffalo, and we stand in solidarity with the victims, their friends, and their families. There is no justification for such a horrible act in our well-developed society. Unfortunately, with the loss of so many innocent lives, a group faces yet another threat in the name of the race.