Civil Rights Leaders Meet with AG Garland Following Buffalo Mass Shooting
(WASHINGTON) - Today, civil rights leaders met with Attorney General Merrick Garland to discuss the May 14 mass shooting in Buffalo, New York, and the Department of Justice’s role in addressing the spread of white supremacy across social media platforms and hate crimes tearing through Black communities across America.
Following the meeting, leaders from organizations in attendance, which include the NAACP, Anti-Defamation League (ADL), National Action Network, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation, National Council of Negro Women, National Urban League, Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, Asian Americans Advancing Justice, and Muslim Advocates released the following statements:
“How many more events like the massacre in Buffalo do we need to see before we take action to finally address white supremacy and domestic terrorism in this nation? This tragedy put on full display that, once again, Black communities must face the mass murder of our people, for no reason other than our race or the color of our skin,” said Derrick Johnson, President and CEO of the NAACP. “Once again, we must bear the trauma caused by a nation that continues to fail to address its own systems of oppression that relentlessly feed white supremacy. We’ve had enough, and it’s time for action. The Department of Justice must use all the tools at its disposal to eradicate the hate that continues to cause this unrelenting, senseless violence. We are encouraged by Attorney General Garland’s commitment to working with the civil rights community to address this problem, and we’re looking forward to a continued partnership with the Department of Justice as it seeks to hold those who stoke hate and violence to justice.”
"From Pittsburgh to Christchurch to El Paso, now Buffalo is the latest community to be scarred by a murderous extremist, this time targeting the African American community,” said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, CEO of ADL. “Violent extremism is the greatest threat facing our nation, and we need a whole-of-government and whole-of-society approach to combat it. My fellow civil rights leaders and I sincerely appreciate Attorney General Garland's focus on fighting domestic terrorism and preventing white supremacist violence from causing more tragedy."
“The most basic responsibility of a government is to protect its citizens. This is a shared responsibility, across all levels of government–local, state, and federal. But when it comes to protecting Black lives, the government has repeatedly failed to live up to its charge, too often unable to align resources and sometimes unwilling to focus on the specific threats posed by anti-Black racism and white supremacist ideology and terror,” said Damon Hewitt, President and Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law. “This moment is a test of our nation’s character. Once again, Black people are left wondering if America believes their lives matter. Our elected leaders must prove that America can and will protect Black lives. We are encouraged by today’s meeting with Attorney General Garland and his commitment to racial justice, which he has acknowledged as the very reason why the Justice Department was created. We call upon state and local leaders everywhere to speak out and take action. Beyond the government, we must all take a stand against this rising tide of hate—including corporations and the private sector. Holding accountable those who enable, amplify, protect, and profit from white supremacists must be our collective priority as a nation. This is a matter of life or death.”
“At our meeting, Muslim Advocates asked Attorney General Garland to open an investigation into Facebook, Twitter, TikTok, Twitch and other social media companies for failing to prevent footage of the Buffalo shooting from spreading. This failure allowed white nationalist propaganda to go viral that will inevitably lead to more violence against marginalized communities. As I told the attorney general, ‘we can’t just allow them to escape accountability for enabling these videos to go viral. Facebook ran ads on these videos. And there’s just no excuse for them to keep enabling this to happen while our community members are dying,’” said Muslim Advocates Senior Policy Counsel Sumayyah Waheed. “Social media companies are monetizing the Buffalo shooting. Their failure to prevent this deadly propaganda from spreading is a matter of urgent public safety and we need the Justice Department to step in and find out what happened and how far and wide and fast the Buffalo footage has spread.”
"We are experiencing a dual epidemic of gun violence and white domestic terrorism that has resulted in deadly consequences in Black and brown communities and in faith houses across the country, with Buffalo New York being the most recent horrific tragedy killing 10 black people at a grocery store,” said Melanie L. Campbell, President and CEO of The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and Convener of The Black Women's Roundtable. “The rise in hate crimes and white nationalism is threatening the very heart of our multi-racial, multi-ethnic democracy and has our organization concerned about how this can impact the upcoming 2022 Midterm Elections that could create an atmosphere of potential violence. I am encouraged to have joined several of my civil rights colleagues in a meeting with the U. S. Justice Department today to share our concerns and to discuss ways to address this crisis by utilizing the full force of the DOJ to remedy these concerns. We cannot take for granted that these deadly attacks will not occur in the future or that they can target any community. Unless the necessary steps are taken, the rising tide of white nationalism will have long term consequences on our community's safety and willingness to participate in civic activity. That is why any person, organization or politcal party that promotes the "great replacement" ideology fueling our national upsurge in white nationalist domestic terrorism must be held accountable."
“On behalf of the Urban League movement, our hearts and deepest sympathies are with the families who have lost loved ones to another senseless act of racial violence, this time in Buffalo, NY. Our fury is with the white supremacists who are the perpetrators of this violence. And our anger is with the social media companies and gun merchants who have aided and abetted them and other extremists for profit and with the politicians who have recklessly encouraged them for votes,” said Marc H. Morial, President and CEO of the National Urban League. “All have contributed to the crisis of hate that now threatens the safety of our communities, especially for people of color and religious minorities. Our commitment now is doing something about it, beginning with calling on President Biden to hold a national summit on hate crimes to elevate the national consciousness around the rising danger of white supremacy and online extremism. We need a whole-of-nation approach to combat and eliminate this threat to our national security and the stability of our democracy. Until we do, innocent people will continue to pay the deadly price.”
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About NAACP
Founded in 1909 in response to the ongoing violence against Black people around the country, the NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) is the largest and most pre-eminent civil rights organization in the nation. We have over 2,200 units and branches across the nation, along with well over 2M activists. Our mission is to secure the political, educational, social, and economic equality of rights in order to eliminate race-based discrimination and ensure the health and well-being of all persons.
NOTE: The Legal Defense Fund – also referred to as the NAACP-LDF was founded in 1940 as a part of the NAACP, but separated in 1957 to become a completely separate entity. It is recognized as the nation's first civil and human rights law organization and shares our commitment to equal rights.
About ADL
ADL is the leading anti-hate organization in the world. Founded in 1913, its timeless mission is “to stop the defamation of the Jewish people and to secure justice and fair treatment to all.” Today, ADL continues to fight all forms of antisemitism and bias, using innovation and partnerships to drive impact. A global leader in combating antisemitism, countering extremism and battling bigotry wherever and whenever it happens, ADL works to protect democracy and ensure a just and inclusive society for all. More at www.adl.org.
About the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law
The Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law is a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization, formed in 1963 at the request of President John F. Kennedy to mobilize the nation’s leading lawyers as agents for change in the Civil Rights Movement. Today, the Lawyers’ Committee uses legal advocacy to achieve racial justice, fighting inside and outside the courts to ensure that Black people and other people of color have the voice, opportunity, and power to make the promises of our democracy real. For more information, please visit https://lawyerscommittee.org.
About Muslim Advocates
Muslim Advocates is a national civil rights organization working in the courts, in the halls of power and in communities to halt bigotry in its tracks. We ensure that American Muslims have a seat at the table with expert representation so that all Americans may live free from hate and discrimination.
About The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation and Black Women’s Roundtable
The National Coalition on Black Civic Participation (NCBCP) is one of the most active civil rights and social justice organizations in the nation “dedicated to increasing civic engagement, economic and voter empowerment in Black America.” The Black Women’s Roundtable (BWR) is the women and girls’ empowerment and power building arm of the NCBCP. At the forefront of championing just and equitable public policy on behalf of Black women, BWR promotes their health and wellness, economic security & prosperity, education and global empowerment as key elements for succes
National Urban League
The National Urban League is a historic civil rights organization dedicated to economic empowerment in order to elevate the standard of living in historically underserved urban communities. The National Urban League spearheads the efforts of its 92 local affiliates through the development of programs, public policy research and advocacy, providing direct services that impact and improve the lives of more than 2 million people annually nationwide. Visit www.nul.org and follow us on Twitter and Instagram: @NatUrbanLeague.