On Thursday, a federal grand jury indicted the shooter, Payton Gendron, on counts including federal hate crime charges punishable by the death penalty.
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — The names of the 10 Black people massacred by a white gunman were read aloud Thursday outside the Buffalo supermarket where they died, two months after the Tops location remains the only supermarket in the immediate area. Its closure after the shooting forced many residents to take buses to other locations or rely on stopgap measures like neighborhood giveaways to access fresh food.
“We must never forget the intoxicating pain and utter cruelness of what occurred here,” state Attorney General Letitia James said Thursday, before going inside the store. “Today we reclaim this space as ours.”
State Assembly Majority Leader Crystal Peoples-Stokes, whose district includes the city, said her office fielded calls from people opposed to reopening, but she said the community could not wait years for a replacement.
Suggestions to local media and on social networks included turning the site into a park or recreational center that would bring the community together, or having several supermarkets that are more dispersed throughout Buffalo’s East Side.
Some simply aren’t comfortable entering a store where such terrible events took place.
“I can’t go right now,” said Willie Boyd, 82, as he chatted with friends on a sidewalk nearby. He said he knew some of the victims and couldn’t yet bring himself to walk the aisles where they died.
“I will eventually,” he said. “I just can’t right now. I just can’t.”
Gendron was arrested outside the store’s front entrance.
Tops President John Persons said the store was remodeled from floor to ceiling, given a new color palate, displays and equipment. It would have taken two to three years to build a new store — too long for the community to wait, he said.
“It’s a completely different store,” Persons said. “Everything is different.”
Just over 75% of employees have returned, he said, while 10% have not yet decided. The rest transferred to other stores or left the company.
Mayor Byron Brown said he was apprehensive while first touring the remodeled store but believes the overhaul will help customers. Before going inside Thursday, he called it “sacred ground.”
“I realize that not everyone will feel comfortable returning to the store,” he said in a statement, adding he’s encouraging other retailers to serve the area.
Bishop, the store employee, has already returned to work at the store to help prepare. Her first day went smoothly, but a security drill with flashing lights on the second day sent her home, shaken, mid-shift. Still, she said she’s not afraid for her safety.
Persons said safety upgrades included a new emergency evacuation alarm system and additional emergency exits. Outside, the parking lot and perimeter have new LED lighting.
“I just want peace. I just want peace,” Bishop said. “It’ll never go back to the way it was. We’re not looking for the way it was. But peace.”
TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku, and Android TV. Please download theGrio mobile apps today!
The post Tops grocery, scene of Buffalo massacre, opens today; accused shooter indicted on federal hate crimes appeared first on TheGrio.
