The Jefferson Avenue Tops may reopen Friday, but that hasn't stopped the debate within Buffalo's Black community. Some are adamant the the store should be torn down and replaced by a memorial to honor the 10 Black people who were shot and killed at the site by a racially-motivated gunman on May 14. Others recall the struggle to bring the store to the neighborhood and want it to return to providing fresh food and produce to the many who have grown to rely on it through the years.
Jillian Hanesworth has been hearing the arguments and shares the conflicted emotions. Buffalo's Poet Laureate has written woks in response to the massacre. Her poem "Water" will be part of an in-store memorial to the victims. Still, she's not sure if she will ever step foot in the store.
