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Crime

Tops Market Survivor: 'We Want To Move Forward In Peace'

Fragrance Harris Stanfield was working at Tops Supermarket alongside her daughter when a gunman opened fire.

Tops Market Survivor: 'We Want To Move Forward In Peace'
Joshua Bessex / AP
By Elina Tarkazikis
SMS
May 18, 2022

Ten people are dead after a gunman opened fire at Tops Supermarket in Buffalo, New York. An 18-year-old is charged in the shooting.

Survivor Fragrance Harris Stanfield, who was working at the market at the time of the attack, joined Newsy to talk through her experience. 

Stanfield and her daughter, both of whom are customer service leads at Tops, were working when they heard gunshots. In the scramble for shelter, the two got separated in different parts of the store. 

While they both managed to make it out alive, they continue taking steps to heal.

"We're going to counseling, we're meeting in group sessions, we're working through the trauma," Stanfield said.

Stanfield said they are seeing fellow employees each day, exchanging hugs and support.

She said she is choosing not to acknowledge the shooter whatsoever.

"I don't give my energy for him, I don't want him to have a platform with me, so I'm not going to talk about him at all," said Stanfield.

"What we talk about is that we have a very loving community, that we want to move forward in peace, and we want to move forward in love, and that we don't have any ill feelings towards any group of people," Stanfield said. "You won't find us being hateful towards anyone, not because of this, or because of anything else."

A Buffalo police officer talks to children at the scene of Saturday's shooting at a supermarket.

Buffalo Supermarket Shooting: What Do We Know So Far?

Police have not released the names of most of the victims. They have said that, including the wounded, 11 victims were Black and two were white.

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Because Tops was the only major market in the area, the shooting has created a food desert in the community. Stanfield said many organizations have stepped up to provide support with food items and fresh produce.