On May 14, 2022, ten people were fatally shot with three injured at a Tops Supermarket in Buffalo, NY, constituting the second most deadly mass shooting this year at the time of writing. As the number of mass shootings and fatalities continues to climb each year with alarming frequency, researchers and policymakers have sought to examine the factors contributing to an increased incidence of deadly domestic terrorist attacks and perpetrators’ underlying motivations in hopes of finding a solution. While many mass shooters are often discussed with regard to mental illness and difficult childhoods, the prevalence of racist ideologies carried by these murderers is impossible to ignore.
Although the Buffalo shooting is not uniquely marked by its classification as a hate crime, it may be surprising that the gunman drove approximately 200 miles from his hometown in Conklin, NY to the targeted Tops in Buffalo. The identification of this supermarket was no accident—it was specifically chosen due to its prevalence as a centralized hub in a food impoverished neighborhood with a large Black constituency. As the only supermarket within miles of its location, this racist attack calls attention to the related issues of community health and food insecurity.
The Tops in Buffalo is located in what is commonly referred to as a food desert. The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food deserts as low-income tracts in which a substantial number or proportion of the population has low access to supermarkets or large grocery stores. Essentially, food deserts are exactly as they sound—areas in which access to nutritional food is scarce. Some estimates report that food deserts affect roughly 23 million Americans, although sources vary. Fresh produce, lean protein, and whole grains are key components of a balanced diet that favorably impacts health and reduces the risk of mortality. Studies have shown that nutritional foods play an essential role in reducing the risk of developing cardiovascular disease, cancer, and diabetes. Moreover, quality nutrition is also linked to improving and maintaining positive mental health. Low accessibility to healthy ingredients in a food desert forces community members to instead rely on cheaper and more readily available processed foods and fast-food options. Together, this creates worse diets that can lead to abnormally large spikes in blood sugar and blood pressure, which deteriorate the quality of health over time. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services has reported that vulnerable populations have twice the risk of a heart attack and diabetes as well as four times the risk of renal failure.
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