Today, President Joe Biden will travel to Buffalo, New York, to meet privately with the families of victims after a racially motivated mass shooting Saturday at a grocery store left 10 people dead. He is also supposed to meet with first responders and local officials before delivering public remarks.
His plans to travel were first announced over the weekend by the White House. Following the tragic event, Biden had told reporters he had “not yet” spoken with victims’ families and was “trying to work out the schedule” to make a trip to the area. However, he did note that he had spoken by phone with Democratic New York Gov. Kathy Hochul. During his Sunday remarks, President Biden expressed condolences for the families and said he was receiving regular briefings from his team.
“We’re still gathering the facts, but already, the Justice Department has stated publicly that it’s investigating the matter as a hate crime, racially motivated act of white supremacy and violent extremism. As they do, we must all work together to address the hate that remains a stain on the soul of America. Our hearts are heavy once again, but our resolve must never waver,” Biden said at the time.
As we previously reported, a white, 18-year-old gunman allegedly carried out a racist attack at a supermarket in Buffalo, N.Y., on Saturday, killing 10 people and injuring three others, according to authorities. Almost all of the victims were Black. The suspect, who livestreamed the mass shooting, is believed to be the author of a screed posted online detailing his white supremacist ideologies and his plan to target a Black community in New Yor
The suspect has been charged with first-degree murder. If convicted, he would face a maximum sentence of life without parole.
The Buffalo shooter’s family has since spoken out and claimed he murdered 10 people due to COVID. They said he snapped at supermarket because of his paranoia and isolation during the pandemic:
“I have no idea how he could have gotten caught up in this. I blame it on COVID,” said a cousin of Gendron’s mother, Sandra Komoroff, 68, said to the New York Post. “He was very paranoid about getting COVID, extremely paranoid, to the point that — his friends were saying — he would wear the hazmat suit [to school],” she said. “And then he got COVID just a few weeks ago. … He went to family functions with a respirator mask on. He totally wasn’t going to get COVID — and then he got COVID.”
“That’s the only way to say it. When you’re home all day on the Internet, you’re missing out on human contact. There’s a lot of emotions and a lot of body language you’re not getting as when you.” see their face,’ Komoroff explained to the Post.
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