BUFFALO, N.Y. — "5/14: The Day the Devil Came to Buffalo" written by Mark Talley tells the raw story of being the son of a victim gunned down in a Buffalo supermarket.
Talley's mother, Geraldine Talley, was 62 years old when she was killed on May 14, 2022, inside Tops supermarket on Jefferson Avenue in Buffalo.
"People ask, is this book appropriate to be in the Buffalo Public School system? And I'll give my give my honest answer. Probably not, but neither is slavery, but you know, we have to talk and discuss the bad along with the good," Talley said.
The mayor of Buffalo and school district purchased books that will be available in four Buffalo Public School parent centers. It will be shared with district leaders and board members.
Superintendent Dr. Tonja Williams said "the district leadership will be doing a book study because there is information contained within the book that developmentally we have to review and see how we can help to make the events that are covered in the book teachable moments for our children, that are developmentally appropriate because we have children as young as 3 years old through the age of 18 years old."
Mayor Brown added: "As a community we don't want to forget. We never want to forget what happened here on 5/14. We want to continue to respect and honor those whose lives were taken. We want to send a message to the nation that what happened here on May 14, 2022, must end, must stop. Things like this continue to happen in communities all across our country, urban, suburban and rural."
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