The aftermath of a violent protest that started Saturday night and lasted until early Sunday saw businesses in Elmwood Village vandalized, and windows smashed. Still, the community quickly responded by sweeping off pieces of broken glass and other debris, removing graffiti, and boarding up storefronts.
What started as a peaceful protest in Niagara Square turned violent spreading down into Elmwood Avenue, the report from WKBW said. Store owners are, however, grateful for the help they got from the community and other supporters.
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On Sunday morning, at least a dozen businesses along Elmwood Avenue in Buffalo had their windows smashed, the Buffalo News reported. Many storefronts ended up with broken windows and had to be boarded up over the weekend while residents help clean up the glass shards.
Mark Sommer, in his tweet, showed four Elmwood businesses suffered from broken windows: Elmwood pet supply, Hunt real estate, Yotality, and Campus Wheelworks. While Twitter user, Mike Connelly posted photos of windows shattered at the Bank of America and volunteers cleaning up just outside of a storefront on Elmwood.
Elmwood Pet Supplies co-owner, John Higgins, said protesters passed by their store quickly, and the store's camera caught one protester picked up a brick and smashed a window. He is not angry, though. The community responded fast, he said, as dozens of people immediately came with plywood, crew guns, and brooms, and everything was clean after 20 minutes.
In North Buffalo, some shop owners on Hertel Avenue boarded up their storefronts after rumors that they could be the next target spread on social media, recounts the WKBW report. While there were no untoward incidents that happened, Jimmies Shoe Repair owner, Joseph Bavisotto, said it was upsetting to see the messages of protest "marred."
Apart from broken windows, graffiti, fires, and looting happened at the City Hall, Niagara Square, and other locations in Buffalo. Some of the establishments with reported damage include Raw Renewal Yoga located on Court Street; old CVS store, Main and Court streets; and Main Jewelers.
The Elmwood Village Association has launched a fundraiser to help businesses that suffered damage during the riot, WIVB.com, reported. The Glass ain't Cheap Fundraiser" aims to raise money to cover the cost of replacing the broken windows on Elmwood Avenue. The community group requests donations, even as small as $5.
The group expressed shock and discouragement after the events the unfolded throughout the City of Buffalo last Saturday night. Every single business felt the effects of the riot, the fundraiser page said, and they appeal for support to help businesses reopen.
In a recent development, Terrence Floyd, brother of George Floyd, appealed to protesters to do it "peacefully," New York Post reported. On Monday, June 1, 2020, Terrence went to the spot where his brother died. And amid the crowd gathered at the memorial site, he said he did not come over messing up the community, and so he asked, "What are you all doing?" He added that the violence is not going to bring back his brother.
