The memorial will remember the people who died two years after the hateful mass shooting in Buffalo

BUFFALO, NY – Tuesday marks two years since a gunman entered the Tops supermarket in Buffalo and killed 10 Black people in a hateful mass shooting.

In the afternoon, the Buffalo community will come together to unveil a memorial in Tops honoring the victims. News10NBC's Brett Davidsen will be in Buffalo on Tuesday for the inauguration. The live broadcast starts at 12:00 p.m.

The memorial will serve as a place of honor, comfort and reflection as the community continues its healing process. Garnell Whitfield, whose mother Ruth Whitfield was killed in the attack, says the memorial is a step on a long road to recovery.

“Let's be clear, it won't bring my mother back, but it represents hope for a better day. It represents planting a seed within this community that will hopefully bear fruit,” he said.

On Monday, Gov. Kathy Hochul and local leaders, along with members of the 5/14 Memorial Commission, unveiled a final design for a new memorial. The memorial is called “Seeing Us” and contains 10 columns with the names of the people killed.

The man who carried out the mass shooting, whose hatred was fueled by racist conspiracy theories he discovered online, was sentenced to life in prison without parole on state charges. He pleaded guilty in November 2022 and was sentenced in February 2023.

Last January, federal prosecutors announced they would seek the death penalty against the shooter. While there is no death penalty in New York state, the Justice Department has the option to seek it in a separate federal hate crime case.