The shooting of thirteen innocent individuals last Saturday in Buffalo, New York, is another example of the seemingly endless violence committed against people of color in our country daily. A volatile combination of assault weapon accessibility, misguided ideologies of hate, domestic terrorism, and tactics of white genocide adopted by an eighteen-year-old resulted in the deaths of ten Blacks and three wounded. The teenager accused of killing Blacks in the Buffalo supermarket massacre posted a rambling white supremacist manifesto that spewed a racist philosophy and outlined step-by-step plans to exterminate Blacks in the U.S.
On behalf of the El Paso MLK Committee, we offer our sincere condolences to the families of the victims of this horrific tragedy. We pray that God will strengthen, encourage, and uplift you during this extremely difficult time.
As Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. stated, “Hate begets hate; violence begets violence; toughness begets a greater toughness.” We pray the El Paso Community will continue to align itself with local law enforcement agencies, faith-based groups, school administrators, school districts, parents, organizations, and entrepreneurs to eradicate the threat of violence.
Humbly submitted,
Bishop Albert J. Mays, Jr., MA. ED, ED (c), D.D.
President
MLK Committee
