NEW ORLEANS — The pain caused by the grocery store shooting in Buffalo, NY that investigators believe was motivated by white supremacy, is felt here at home too.
It's stirring up tough conversations about racism.
Burnell Colton owns a grocery store in a predominantly Black neighborhood too. The Army veteran opened the Lower 9th Ward Market after Katrina using his entire life savings because there wasn't a grocery store in his neighborhood.
Hearing about a mass shooting at a grocery store targeting Black people in a predominantly Black neighborhood just like his hits close to home.
"It hurts, it hurts because this is 2022 and it should not be like this," he said. "I don't see color and you're not supposed to see color, you judge a person from the contents of their heart.'
Ten people were killed in Saturday's shooting. Police think the 18-year-old suspect set out to kill as many Black people as possible.
"I still can't wrap my brain around racism, I just can't," Cotlon said.
The shooting has been a main point of conversation at his market since Saturday.
"A lot of people are angry, I'm going to be totally honest with you, they're angry because they are tired of it," he said.
Cotlon believes schools, churches, or other positive influences need to try and stop hate at a young age.
"Imagine what was put into his mind as a child, as a child, because he's still a baby, he's still a child. That much hate you have to ask yourself, where did it come from?" Cotlon said.
Despite incidents like this, Cotlon remains positive, strong, treating all like family.
"You still have to go on. I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing without having any fear in my heart," he said.
Serving a city that is 60 percent black, the Greater New Orleans Foundation President Andy Kopplin released a statement saying in part, "I can only imagine the terror and outrage that this incident stirs in the hearts of so many of our friends and neighbors right here in the Greater New Orleans region, especially those who are Black."
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