Biden, moved, denounces racist shooting in Buffalo as “terrorism”

BUFFALO, N.Y. — Just a short distance from where a white teenager killed 10 people at a supermarket in a rampage apparently fueled by racist conspiracy theories, President Joe Biden urged the country to oppose a rising tide of violent hatred.

“Speak out as the majority in America and condemn white supremacy. We cannot allow them to destroy the state of America, the state of our country,” Biden said. “We must refuse to live in a country where black people doing their weekly shopping can be slaughtered by weapons of war deployed for a racist cause. »

Biden had just finished meeting with the families of the victims of Saturday’s shooting and praised each person who died. He became emotional as he told the story of a father who was killed while inside the Tops supermarket to buy a birthday cake for his 3-year-old son.

“In America, evil cannot win, I promise you. Hate will not prevail and white supremacy will not have the last word,” Biden said during his speech.

The president and first lady arrived in Buffalo earlier Tuesday morning and first went to the grocery store where Payton Gendron, 18, is accused of killing 10 people and injuring three others.

Dr. Jill Biden got out of their vehicle and placed a bouquet of white flowers at a makeshift memorial just across the street from the supermarket. Then the president and first lady stood and paid their respects.

During his speech, the president called the shooting a “deadly rampage” and “domestic terrorism.” He called on people to denounce white supremacy.

Moments before Biden took the stage, a large crowd of residents in the Delavan Grider community were shouting at the president to be more committed to solving America’s racial problems.

“Anyone in this crowd tell me what’s changed since George Floyd? Somebody raise your hand,” David Louis, a 26-year-old resident, asked the crowd.

“Nothing,” he and others responded.

Gendron was reportedly heavily armed with tactical equipment. Buffalo Police Commissioner Joseph Gramaglia said he livestreamed his actions and used an assault weapon during the shooting.

Eleven of the 13 shooting victims were black, ranging in age from 20 to 86. One of the victims was a former police officer who tried to stop the shooter but was ultimately shot and killed.

The killer shot four people outside the grocery store, then entered and shot nine more. When confronted by police, he removed some of the tactical gear he was wearing and surrendered.

Gendron, a white supremacist, released a manifesto spewing racial hatred. He claimed to have been radicalized online while bored during the pandemic, and apparently believes in the racist Great Replacement theory, in which white people are deliberately replaced by people who are not white.

Gendron was charged with first-degree murder and pleaded not guilty Saturday. His next court date is Thursday.

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stood alongside residents of the Delavan Grider community after Biden’s remarks. The New York Democrat condemned the racist shooting and said the community would “move forward” from the tragedy.

“I know because I know this community. I remember as if it were yesterday standing in front of the new Tops supermarket on Jefferson Avenue. I was proud to advocate for its construction, bringing healthy, affordable food to this food desert,” Schumer said in a statement.

“What we didn’t know at the time was the extent to which the Tops would become a neighborhood gathering place, which is why this vicious killer chose this supermarket for his evil act. He wanted to put a dagger in the heart of the community; how vicious, mean, cruel and deranged he was.

This article was originally published on HuffPost and has been updated.