Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Two years ago on Tuesday, an 18-year-old White supremacist came to East Buffalo with an evil agenda of killing as many Black people as he possibly could at the Tops Friendly Market on Jefferson Avenue.
While a community continues to grieve, families continue to mourn and survivors continue to try to function normally in their daily lives, certain promises and investments have been made by government officials to a community with shared trauma.
"As your neighbor, but also as your governor, I've made it a central priority to do what we can do to continue to address East Buffalo's immediate needs and take on the systemic challenges that have faced this community far too long," said Gov. Kathy Hochul on Monday during the unveiling of the design details of a permanent 5/14 Memorial in East Buffalo.
This design includes not only a collection of pillars inscribed with the names of the victims and survivors, but a whole support building attached acting as a "central hub for education, exhibitions, community activities, gatherings, and events."
The funding for Buffalo's East Side came almost as quick as the national spotlight did. A month later, the governor secured $50 million dollars for East Buffalo and a year later added another $10 million for a series of "targeted investments" to help address the needs of the community.
"We heard from the community, what do you need right now. We need to help struggling homeowners, we need to help jumpstart economic growth, help the small businesses become stronger workforce training, address food insecurity, increase access to healthy food options and expand affordable mental health to people of all ages, and have centers for people to deal with this unique trauma," said Hochul.
Hochul also notes the $1 billion Kensington Expressway project, the roadway that divides the city in two.
"We've invested $1 billion in a Kensington expressway. Why? Because to me, it always been a visible reminder of racism that has manifested itself even in our infrastructure, because people didn't care," Hochul said. "The community didn't have voices that were powerful at the time. It divided a neighborhood for generations. We continue to engage - monthly meetings with neighbors on how state agencies can work together, and figure out how to best serve these committees, not just because of this. We started this before the major investments because I know this community, but also, this is not a short-term fix. We are in this for the long haul."
So with these investments now being implemented, a new remodeled grocery store and more promises being made, is East Buffalo seeing change?
WBEN posed that question to Fragrance Harris Stanfield, a survivor of the Tops shooting and a member of the 5/14 Commission on Monday.
"I have seen things, yeah," said Stanfield. "Prior to this incident, you know, we don't talk about what our lives were like. But I was a community activist that was very active in the community and looking at what the investments are doing, I think a lot of it is made to look good, but I don't think they're really focusing on a number of things that actually needs to be done."
She mentions that based on the surveys and responses from the community with their thoughts for the 5/14 Memorial, it wouldn't make sense to her necessarily to do what they are currently proposing now.
"It's similar to the issue with the Buffalo United Resiliency Center. It's supposed to be united, but somehow we ended up with two. It's kind of a waste of resources. And it happens often here, unfortunately," Stanfield said. "So I don't think their intention is not to be helpful. But the reality is, it's not as helpful as it could or should be."
Stanfield notes there are some more resources are coming once the memorial is built, which she thinks will help the community.
"I think we should start where this all happened and resonate outward, which I think some agencies have done," she said. "I will note the Buffalo Urban League has taken a real point to put their Resiliency Center right there in the space of the aftermath, kind of like 9/11, you want to be right there at Ground Zero, and they're going to build another institution right there, it's going to be near the memorial.
"If people need services, if people are looking for something, you have a central area to come to. So with this being a catalyst for that, it just makes sense that this should be kind of the hub where you come and look for help and healing and hope. So I think we should have just started there instead of like, getting distracted by you know, all the different areas that we could start with. And if we did that, at least you can see change better, because when you start in a centralized area, it's easier to see what we're doing."
