‘Punches you in the gut’ Neighborhood market in historic South Atlanta vandalized

ATLANTA — Vandals damaged a non-profit grocery store in the middle of a community already dealing with the shooting death of Rayshard Brooks.

Carver Neighborhood Market is located off Jonesboro Road in historic south Atlanta. It is about half a mile from the Wendy’s parking lot where Brooks was shot and killed by a police officer.

Early Tuesday morning, vandals smashed windows and wrote graffiti on the business which is run by Focused Community Strategies non-profit.

“We try to make progress. We try to work together. And somebody comes in and punches you in the gut," Devron Woodruff told Channel 2′s Berndt Petersen.

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Workers and neighbors don’t believe anyone from the neighborhood would do this and feel that someone outside of the community is responsible.

“I was never thinking we’d be the ones to get assaulted. Assaulted like this,” store employee Xavier Bryan said.

“At the end of the day, those guys don’t live where we live. They don’t feel what we’re feeling," Asish Reese said.

Staff, neighbors and volunteers worked through the day Tuesday to board up the store and clean up the damage. Members of a local youth group also stopped by to lend a helping hand.

Employees at Carver said they have worked for years to give back to the historic South Atlanta neighborhood. The people who care about the work say they will carry on.

“It’s just frustrating. They don’t get it. We’re trying. But they messed it up. But it doesn’t mean we’re gonna stop," Woodruff said.

The market will remain open but boarded up for a while. Petersen was told there is security camera video turned over to police.

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