The events that occurred on Tuesday morning, July 7, in the eastern part of the city of Houston are known to us all. The shooting death of a man at the hands of ICE agents and the wave of information and misinformation that has followed.
Between the version officially given by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and what the witnesses recount, we have all seen a family devastated, children clamoring for justice and transparency in their father’s death.
Among the shouts of the community demanding justice and that have taken to the streets and every possible event to give visibility to this case, and those who mock the family’s situation, who, with no tact behind a screen, write messages that make us doubt the humanity of people. There is a shattered family, a man dead and many questions left unresolved.
Far from political division, far from rejoicing at others’ misfortunes and judging others, empathy must prevail.
“Mental and emotional identification of a subject with the mood of another”; that is the meaning of the word empathy in the Real Academia Española dictionary. In Spanish, in English, in French and in all the languages of the world—that is the meaning; we have to recognize the situation this family is going through.
Regardless of the reasons that led to the death of Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, whose name we must not forget, until there is transparency in his murder and his family can have closure, we should be empathetic.
Empathetic toward those who lost a loved one, empathetic about the life situation, if he did not have legal status, Lorenzo should not have died.
From here on, we will continue to see those who do not stand with the children of a murdered man; more than that, one might even read that he deserved this fate or that it was caused by his actions for coming to this country illegally.
But no, ladies and gentlemen, in moments like these many of us think about the circumstances by which each of us arrived in this country, and that is not a reason to lose our life.
Perhaps they judge from their own reality, but having certain privileges is not a reason to lose humanity; we must not let ideologies or political beliefs rob us of sensitivity.
Today it was Lorenzo’s family’s turn to endure this tragedy; we do not know if someday any of us will have to face a difficult situation that changes life.
The circumstances could have been different, but they were not; a man was murdered and that is enough to wake us up, and if we do not support, let us not criticize those who do. Lorenzo’s children are now in front of cameras, speaking before crowds, something that never crossed their minds, but they have faced it with dignity and strength. The engine that drives them is to find the truth, to know why their father died that morning as he was on his way to work. And that is not a reason to insult them, to mock this moment they are going through to get an answer.
If we have nothing positive to say, if we do not want to support for any reason, we should simply remain silent. Let them seek their answers, receive support, and let us hope they find the truth.
What do you think?
