Contact: Nils Robbins
Tel: 202-770-8053
Email: Nils.Robbins@NationalDMO.org

DMO STATEMENT ON THE WHITE SUPREMACIST ATTACK IN BUFFALO

Once again a Black community has been subjected to mass violence at the hands of a white supremacist. On Saturday, a white gunman drove several hours to Buffalo, NY, specifically targeting a supermarket that serves Black Americans. There are at least ten reported victims of his attack, including a security guard who attempted to stop the assailant.

More disturbing than the violence itself is what motivated the man to go hunting for Black lives. His manifesto espouses a belief in a white supremacist conspiracy called the “Great Replacement Theory”. This fear that white birth rates are falling behind those of people of color can be found not only in the shooter’s manifesto, but on Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight”. Carlson personally supported Great Replacement Theory as a tactic Democrats are using to gain political control of the country. The shooter also targeted Jewish people in his manifesto, citing them as the source of “critical race theory”, another Fox News bogeyman widely broadcast on the network.

While hate speech is protected by the Constitution, incitement to violence is not. When gunmen draw clear lines between their attacks and the words of right-wing media personalities, it is time to hold the broadcasters accountable. DMO also calls on the Biden Administration to reinvigorate funding, resources, and interdepartmental coordination on efforts to identify and stop white supremacist violence before it can happen.

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