The Society of United Professionals joined so many in the United States, Canada and around the world in grief and outrage following the hate-motivated mass shootings in Buffalo, New York and Uvalde, Texas.
A self-described white supremacist used careful planning and precision to target a Buffalo grocery store predominantly frequented by African Americans. Following his attack, which killed 10 people, the gunman’s online journal came to light. In his journal, the shooter noted that he took inspiration from previous hate-motivated shootings and the “great replacement” conspiracy theory. This racist and antisemitic conspiracy theory claims that Jewish people are responsible for encouraging Black and Brown people to migrate to Western nations to dilute the power of white people.
Just days later, a shooter entered an elementary school in Uvalde and killed 19 children and two women who were teachers. Following the Uvalde rampage, it came to light that the shooter identified as an incel, or involuntarily celibate. Incels have been responsible for many mass casualty events that target women, children and trans-identified people, including the infamous van attack on Toronto’s Yonge Street in 2018.
While these catastrophic events happened in the United States, history tells us that Canada is just as vulnerable to such hate-motivated killings. Whether it is the 2018 Toronto van attack, the 2017 mass shooting at a Quebec City mosque, or the 2021 truck attack on a Muslim family in London, Ontario, Canada is far from immune from the violence associated with such hateful ideologies.
The Society of United Professionals will continue to speak out forcefully against hate of any kind and encourages everyone to do the same in their homes, workplaces, and communities.
