Department of Justice to announces efforts to combat hate crimes

Attorney General Merrick Garland is expected to announce initiatives to combat hate crimes today.

The white man accused of a racist massacre Saturday inside a Buffalo supermarket — an assault with a fusillade of gunfire that left 10 dead — has been indicted by a grand jury.

Federal prosecutors are also expected to charge the 18-year-old man with hate crimes as he created an online racist diatribe before he traveled to Buffalo on Saturday, May 14.

The suspect's alleged crimes and his clear racism against Black people have sparked state and nationwide conversations about race; guns; so-called "red flag" laws which are designed to identify mentally unstable people seeking firearms; and a once-fringe theory called the "great replacement theory" that has now slithered into mainstream media and politics.

This week Gov. Kathy Hochul unveiled proposals to combat domestic terrorism in New York and Attorney General Letitia James announced an investigation into social media channels where the suspect allegedly plotted his assault and communicated with others of similar ideology.

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Department of Justice announces efforts to combat hate crimes