Buffalo supermarket reopens 2 months after mass shooting

NEW YORK - The Buffalo supermarket where 10 Black people were killed by a white gunman is set to reopen its doors to the public Friday, two months after the racist attack.A moment of silence and prayer will be held Thursday at Tops Friendly Market to honor the victims, employees and community impacted by the May 14 mass shooting, with a ceremonial reopening of the overhauled store before customers return Friday, the company said.Ten Black people were killed when a then-18-year-old gunman wearing body armor and carrying a semi-automatic rifle opened fire on weekend shoppers and employees.

Three people were wounded in the massacre.Investigators say the shooter was motivated by white supremacist beliefs and researched the demographics of the predominantly Black neighborhood where the market is located with the intent of killing as many Black people as possible.

He drove for more than three hours from his home in Conklin, New York, to carry out the attack, authorities said.A grand jury has charged the white 18-year-old accused of fatally shooting 10 Black people at a Buffalo supermarket with domestic terrorism motivated by hate and 10 counts of first-degree murder.The decision to reopen, rather than relocate, the store has been met with mixed emotions in the East Buffalo neighborhood that, beset by high poverty, fought for years to get a grocery store.

Since opening in 2003, the Tops location remains the only supermarket in the immediate area. Its closure in the wake of the shooting forced many residents to take buses to other locations or rely on stopgap measures like neighborhood giveaways to access fresh food."We must go on," said Tops employee Rosalie Bishop, who has worked at the store for 12 years.