As we mourn
5/14 will forever be ingrained in our memory that we, the Black /African-American community, were vulnerable at the hands of a White supremacist, who decided Black lives were not worthy of living.
The predominantly Black/African-American community on the Eastside of Buffalo was attacked, for no other reason than for being Black.
The 10 victims whose name we will never forget are symbolic of the racial tension that our country continues to ignore in the middle of American exceptionalism: we are not the “city upon a hill.”
In fact, we have become more segregated, more divisive, and more siloed than before.
As we mourn, we remember the lives lost, the hope shattered, the community left in despair, and the people abandoned by a system to protect, not harm.
As we mourn, we stand resilient that we will build back Buffalo stronger, but not alone.
As we mourn, we will forever be susceptible to White perpetrators of violence who the law sides with, no matter what.
As the Eastside of Buffalo mourns, we, the Black community in Buffalo and across the nation heals from not only 5/14, but systemic racism, generational poverty, state sanctioned violence, and corruption. It's our belief that it takes everyone contributing before a solution is reached.
We are better, stronger together than apart.
E.C.R.J.C stands with the 10 victims and 3 individuals injured by hate and their families affected by the senseless violence on 5/14.
We stand on the backs of our ancestors, who have fought, peacefully, against this violence.
We remember, as we mourn.