On Sunday, it will be exactly one year since a white supremacist shooter in Buffalo, New York, killed 10 people, all of whom were Black. Buffalo’s mayor, Byron Brown, told CBS News that he and the rest of the city are still in grief as a result of the attack at Tops Friendly Markets.
“The city is continuing to heal this weekend, to reflect and remember this horrible mass shooting motivated by racial hatred,” said Brown. “I can say without a doubt that this terrible tragedy has traumatized me. There are many days when the agony and anguish I feel are quite intense, but they are mostly hidden. However, I am extremely motivated to work with the families of the victims, the survivors, and the people in our community to fight for real change in sensible gun control, the fight against white supremacy, and the regulation of social media to prevent people from being radicalized by the various forms of hate on the internet. Thus, our community has a strong feeling of purpose.
The mayor expressed his hope that Buffalo’s rehabilitation may serve as a role model for other cities experiencing comparable tragedies, particularly in the struggle against white supremacy. But he drew attention to the sobering data that indicates mass shootings are already a fact of life in America.
Sadly, there have been far too many of these horrific shootings in localities around America, according to Brown. “Over 200 mass shootings have already occurred in the United States of America on day 134 of 2023. There have been more than 650 mass shootings in this nation since May 14, 2022, in Buffalo.
Republicans in state legislatures and Congress have persisted in thwarting efforts to pass gun control legislation. Meanwhile, recent studies indicate that the country’s gun violence has gotten more lethal.
In Buffalo, one survivor of the mass shooting from the previous year and the families of the three victims have launched a wrongful death case against several social media sites, alleging that the platforms’ racial and violent material radicalized the shooter. They are also bringing legal action against the maker of the killer’s body armor, the store that sold him the pistol, and the killer’s parents.
The maker of the detachable lock that allowed the murderer to use an unauthorized high-capacity magazine is also named in the case. The state’s attorney general has also brought a different case against that business.
Mayor Brown says he’s keeping up the fight for change and attributes his ability to get through difficult times to his faith, family, friends, and the Buffalo community as a whole.
“Buffalo is a strong and resilient community,” Brown declared. “The community has rallied behind one another and supported one another through all of these difficulties. And I’m just incredibly proud to lead Buffalo, New York, as mayor.