Jose Saldana

May 17, 2022:

Our Hearts Are With the People of Buffalo

Dear RAPP Family,

Yesterday, RAPP’s Director Jose Saldaña released the following statement in response to the white supremacist attack in Buffalo:

“We are devastated, saddened, and infuriated by the white supremacist attack on the Black community in Buffalo. We stand in love, support, and solidarity with the people and families deeply harmed by this horrific act and the cumulative impact that racism has had on generations of Black people.

We must all eradicate white supremacy from our state’s systems, institutions, and culture. Importantly, we also call on lawmakers to take action to meet the immediate and long-term needs of the families and community targeted in this vicious act of hate. Reinstating the death penalty or expanding the use of life without parole sentences in response to this attack will accomplish neither. As is the case today, those condemned to death by execution or death by incarceration will be mostly Black and Brown New Yorkers. These extreme sanctions have never kept our communities safe. They only reinforce racism in our state and undermine rather than promote community safety and healing. Instead, our state’s political leaders must protect and empower Black and Brown communities by tearing down systems of racial oppression and by providing us with the material resources we need and deserve. All love and power to the people of Buffalo.”

In addition to sharing our statement on twitter, we ask that you join us in supporting local Buffalo organizations that are supporting community members on the ground, including:

• Donate to Black Love Resists in the Rust’s Mental Health and Food Support Fund here: https://donate-usa.keela.co/mental-health-and-food-support
• Drop off food at the Rooted in Love Community Fridge at 347 East Ferry Street, and/or make a donation to the cause: https://rootedinloveinc.com/donate-to-our-cause/
• Drop-off fresh produce, milk, eggs, cheese, formula, baby food, juice, water, labeled cook meals (no raw meat) to the Buffalo Community Fridge at 257 E. Ferry St.
• Donate to Feed Buffalo, a Black woman-led food pantry that provides access to free locally-sourced, healthy, and halal food: https://www.feedbuffalo.org/
• Donate to Every Bottom Covered, a Black-led Diaper Bank located on the East Side of Buffalo: https://www.everybottomcovered.org/
• Donate catered food by emailing: phylicia@blackloveresistsintherust.org.

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