Buffalo has now become a national and global focal point in the discussion over police brutality and the use of excessive force.

The video seen around the world shows police shoving a 75-year-old protester, Martin Gugino, to the ground. That man was hospitalized with serious injuries and two officers are suspended without pay.

"This tarnishes the Buffalo Police Department, tarnishes the whole city," said Buffalo Common Councilman David Rivera. "Nationally we're looked at especially in a time of tension that we're going through right now."

Rivera spent decades as a Buffalo police officer and detective. He now chairs the council's police oversight committee. He says seeing the video it's clear to him the officers who pushed Martin Gugino to the ground used excessive force. 

"The action of the police officers didn't seem to be justified. At no point was the elderly gentlemen a risk to the Buffalo Police Department, the officers," Rivera said.

The fact that the incident occurred after the 8 p.m. curfew is no excuse, Rivera added, because this was a peaceful protest.  He's disheartened by what happened — especially given this was a protest about police brutality.

"It lends to the lack of confidence people have in law enforcement, especially at this time," Rivera said.

Buffalo Common Council President Darius Pridgen says the use of force was also unnecessary in the this case as calls grow for the department to fire those suspended officers.

"Is that because of who he is or who the [victim] is, because I feel regardless of whether he was white or black, there probably should be a termination," Pridgen said, adding that process is dictated by terms of the city's contract with the police union. "There's a video that is very clear and I think that is what is upsetting so many in America right now."

Both Pridgen and Rivera were concerned about the officers walking past the victim in the moments right after he hit the ground without offering him aid.

They plan to push the police department about training practices and more help for officers in deescalating tense situations without using force. 

"What type of training. Is this permitted? If not, then what are we going to do prevent this from reoccurring," Rivera said. "Those are a lot of the questions we're going to have as a result of what we saw in this video."

Pridgen says supporting protesters and creating reform does not mean he is against police.

"We need good police. Nobody in my neighborhood says, ‘I want less police patrolling my neighborhood.’ What they say is, ‘I want police who respect me and treat me like I should be treated,’" Pridgen said.