Grief-Stricken Magic Johnson Pours His Heart Out For Victims Of Jacksonville’s Harrowing Gun Violence

The city of Jacksonville, Florida, recently came to a standstill. A 21-year-old American, within a span of 11 harrowing minutes, opened fire on innocent people at a Dollar General Store. The shooting claimed the lives of two shoppers and a store employee. Occurring on the same day as the nation marked the 60 anniversary of the March on Washington, the horrifying incident saw people reacting by displaying grief, anger and sympathy. Tributes poured in from all corners of America, including one from 5x NBA champion Magic Johnson.

A few hours ago, former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson took to X (formerly Twitter) to share a tweet with his 5.2 Million followers.

Magic Johnson sends his prayers to the victims of the Jacksonville shooting

The fatal incident took place three days ago. The shooter, identified as an individual by the name of Ryan Palmeter, used a legally purchased gun to open fire on innocent people who were visiting the store to make purchases. Palmeter eventually took his own life from the same rifle.

Documents found by the FBI during it’s investigation in the aftermath of the shooting revealed “multiple documents, including racist writings and rants that depict a hatred toward African Americans, as well as other cultural groups.” FBI Director Christopher Wray has officially designated the shooting a “hate crime”.

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Referencing his wife, Cookie Johnson, along with himself, 64-year-old Magic sent his prayers to the families of the victims. “May God cover them during this difficult time”. The tweet, in just a few hours, received more than 231,300 views.

This is not the first time that Magic Johnson has sent out his regards and sympathies in light of a major mass shooting.

Johnson paid tribute to victims of another mass shooting 6 months ago

Back in February, a mass shooting took place in two buildings located on the campus of Michigan State University. Johnson wrote a tweet in order to give his condolences and to state that he was praying for “the victims, their families, students, faculty, employees & administration.”

A product of the state of Michigan himself, the tragedy hit too close to home for the NBA legend. Tragedy helps in bringing people together. Through his thoughts and prayers, Johnson has shown that he stands against these mass shooting incidents.

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