Statement on Buffalo, NY Shooting

We, Sisters of the Humility of Mary, “will use our voice for peace and justice and work to eradicate all traces of racism.” [HM Litany of Hope and Promise 2021].

We cry out in anger and sadness as we witness yet another domestic terrorist attack committed in the name of white supremacy and anti-blackness that took the lives of ten individuals at a Tops Grocery Store in Buffalo, NY. We grieve with the victims’ families, friends, and community, and say their names:

Ruth Whitfield

Roberta Drury

Aaron Salter

Heyward Patterson

Pearl Young

Geraldine Talley

Celestine Chaney

Katherine Massey

Margus Morrison

Andre Mackneil

May their memories be a blessing and give us the courage to act.

As Sisters, Associates, and Covenant Companions, we ask ourselves when will enough be enough. How and when will senseless gun violence and racism stop? We must all do our own part to bring about the change for which we yearn. In doing so, we commit ourselves, in the spirit of our HM Litany of Hope and Promise to

• A renewed advocacy for gun control;
• Prayer for healing for all victims and survivors of violence;
• Call for an end to racism and violence in all forms; and
• Continuing to deepen our own awareness that racial justice is an essential part of the Gospel call.

We pray that the collective strength of our voices will bring more abundant life to God’s people as we share the love of Jesus through the message of the Gospel and the witness of our lives.