BUFFALO, N.Y. (WBEN) - Acknowledging that recent public meetings on the gun violence crisis in Buffalo, have largely attracted special interest groups, Buffalo Mayor Byron Brown joined Susan Rose and Brian Mazurowski for a lengthy interview Thursday morning on WBEN to say that the city and police are hearing from what he calls "real people."
Community organizations, local leaders, and law enforcement have all been coming together in unprecedented ways this month to look for solutions to the growing gun violence issue.
Brown is skeptical of meetings where only activists come out. "Those who want to defund the police, or think that bad circumstances happening in other communities, are happening here, are wrong," he said.
"Buffalo is not Seattle; Buffalo is not Portland. We need to look at our specific issues, our specific concerns. We need to respond to the needs of our residents and our people," said Brown.
Gun violence has always been an issue in Buffalo, but it is dominating the spotlight this year, as the city is on pace to have the deadliest year since 1994, when there were 92 homicides.
So far, through mid-July, there have been 47 murders in Buffalo.
Brown said public meetings at each of the city's five police districts have resumed on a monthly basis. Members of the public with ideas or concerns are welcome to attend those meetings. "These are authentic meetings," he said. "Real people that live in the communities near police stations can come out. It's an effort to get information from real people that don't have a bias or an idealistic notion that they're trying to push."
Brown said the people in Buffalo's residential neighborhoods and business districts want to see more police and they want to have a good relationship with police. "And they want the community to work together to solve problems specific to Buffalo, Erie County and Western New York."
WBEN reached out to mayoral candidate India Walton. We were told she is unavailable.
