November 6, 2009 3:23 PM
In addition to the online outreach we've been doing to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Marcelo Lucero's death -- which includes our blog campaign, online petition, and video interviews -- there are some important events happening related to Lucero this weekend.
As we've mentioned before, there will be a candlelight vigil in memory of Marcelo on Saturday in Patchogue. Here are the details from an earlier post, and a map to help you find the vigil if you're not from the area:
The Lucero family asks that those in attendance wear a white T-shirt to show solidarity for "peace, healing, and hope." The vigil will start at 6pm on Saturday, November 7, and be followed by a 7:30pm religious service at the Congregational Church of Patchogue on Main St.
During the vigil, the family will collect donations for the Marcelo Lucero Scholarship fund, which raises money for students at Patchogue-Medford High School. You can also contribute to the fund by mail, making your check payable to Marcelo Lucero Scholarship, and sending it directly to Patchogue-Medford High School (181 Buffalo Ave., Medford, New York 11763).
The Lucero family also asks that the vigil "not be used for any political agendas."
On Sunday, the Long Island Latino International Film Festival (LILIFF) will screen the 30-second video that won our "Speak Out/Stop Hate" contest at Stony Brook University's Charles B. Wang Center. The clip (which I'll embed below) was intended to send the message to stop hate against immigrants:
Smile. Stop Hate. For LILIFF. from Josefina Mata on Vimeo.
The clip will be shown directly before "Taught To Hate," a short film by Brentwood's James Garcia Sotomayor, which was inspired by the Lucero tragedy. The film has played in Los Angeles already, but will be making its East Coast premiere at LILIFF on Sunday.
For information about LILIFF tickets and showtimes, click here. Here's a map of the Wang Center at Stony Brook:
Also, the documentary Running Wild - Hate and Immigration on Long Island is airing next Wednesday, November 11, at 11:30 p.m. on WLIW21. For a press release about the documentary, click here.
Marcelo Lucero deserves to be commemorated. What happened to him is indefensible and that kind of hate should be stamped out, as vigorously as possible, of society.
But I have noticed your website does not commemorate the victims of inter-Hispanic violence(correct me if I'm wrong), such as the murder of innocent 13-year-old Wilson Batista by three MS-13 gang members. Is Wilson Batista less deserving than Marcelo Lucero because the latter's attackers were white? Both crimes have a basis in senseless hate, albeit with a different origin.
To get to the point: I think it is a disservice to the Immigrant and/or Hispanic community to ignore the serious flaws that many immigrants bring(gang membership is one that comes to mind). By not addressing, explaining, and paying attention to real issues, the anti-immigrant groups can use the bad as ammunition to their cause--which is to paint immigrants as a scourge upon U.S. society. I don't want that and I am sure you don't, either.
Please be more compassionate in the scope of who you commemorate.
By Bryan J. November 7, 2009 02:54 PM
Dear Bryan J,
This site is not a memorial site for Hispanic murder victims, it is an immigrant rights site.
As such, we do not routinely memorialize every Hispanic Long Islander murdered by another Hispanic, or by non-Hispanics.
We do comment on social issues, like gang violence and the need for strict enforcement efforts coupled with community cooperation. Here is an example:
http://www.longislandwins.com/blog/in_the_news/third_killing_in_two_months_by.php?page=email
We did not devote dozens of blogs to Marcelo Lucero's murder because his killers were white. In fact, one of the young men in the mob that killed him was of mixed Latino-African American ancestry. The race of his attackers is not relevent in a hate crime, the motivation is.
We focused on Marcelo Lucero's murder because it was a demonstrable anti-immigrant bias crime, it came after a long period of political agitation against immigrants by politicians and political activists, it represented one of a dozen attacks by the same group of young people, with the previous attacks having gone either un-reported or un-investigated.
By the way, immigrants did not "bring" gang membership to America. Gangs like the Crips, Bloods, Pagans, et al predate large scale immigration to Long Island. I have taken a strong stand against gangs, Latino or otherwise, for over 15 years and was an early participant in Nassau PD anti-gang efforts, dating back to the days of Deputy Chief Herb Faust. As i have pointed out previously on this web site, I was once called by Faust to see if I thought I needed police protection because of my outspokenness on gangs, particularly MS-13 and SWP..
By Patrick young November 7, 2009 03:37 PM
By the way, Bryan, as Long Island has become more immigrant, our crime rate has gone down, a trend reflected elsewhere:
http://www.longislandwins.com/blog/in_the_news/immigrants_up_crime_down_says.php
By Pat Young November 7, 2009 03:48 PM
Hello,
My main point(which I didn't make clear by my poor choice of wording) was more of a suggestion. Let me put it this way: Do anti-immigrant groups, politicians, or other media sources exploit stories--such as an ms-13 murder--to fuel their objectives? If so, what is the best way to counter that?
Again, when I said immigrants "brought" gangs to Long Island, I used a poor choice of words. I know gangs pre-date large-scale immigration to Long Island, but the particular MS-13 variety was not here(correct me if I'm wrong). MS-13 is inextricably linked to immigrants, at least from Central America because it all starts with how so many Salvadorans ended up here in the first place--their civil war. I know there is much more to it, but there is a connection. To flesh that out (though it would be interesting) is outside of the scope of the comments section.
Ah, let me change one more thing from my original post. I should have said that "some" immigrants bring, not "many".
By Bryan J. November 7, 2009 04:40 PM
MS-13 actually started in LA, not Central America.
Good anti-gang efforts
1. Outreach to young people on the dangers of gang membership-Nassau has a good program where young Latinos speak to other young Latinos about resisting the lure of the gangs.
2. Reduction in inter-group conflict-MS originally formed in LA when other gangs began focusing on attacking young, naive, Central American immigrants. MS essentially started for purposes of self-protection, then became as violent as the anti-Central American gangs it was resisting. Reducing tensions in a school goes a long way towards undermining gang recruitment.
3. Giving young people after-school alternatives to gangs-Jobs and recreational programs take away the tinder of the gangs, young people with nothing better to do.
4. Good police/community relations-The Nassau police realized quite early that if they behaved like an occupation force in Latino communities, they could expect to be treated that way. They developed programs to insure that officers behaved with respect towards immigrants and avoided being seen as immigration agents. This has broken down much of the mistrust that had existed before 1999. The immigrant community now functions as the eyes and ears of the police in countering the gangs.
5. Work with Latino community groups-The churches and community organizations are the principal gathing places for Latinos. While these community organizations can sometimes take a critical stance towards government, Nassau has regular consultations with community groups, and listens to immigrant voices, including those that are critical of the police and political leadership. This gives the police an entre into the Latino community that the police in Suffolk frankly don't enjoy.
6. Good intelligence about gang activities-Many local governments either ignore gangs or politicize them. Neither approach is appropriate. Instead, knowing who the gang members are and gathering intel from a cooperative community are crucial in destroying gang structures.
7. Strict enforcement of law relating to gang activity-Some localities on the West coast have essentailly turned whole blocks over to gangs. Poor people are forced to endure unrestricted criminal actvity. In Nassau, the DA along with Hempstead police sought to end this de facto practice in the Terrace Ave. neighborhood, where i used to see members of non-Latino gangs deal drugs and weapons openly on the streets. Taling away venues for profit making gang enterprises undermines the gangs ability to maintain its structures and discipline.
I obviously can't go into every aspect of countering gangs, but we have a good model here in Nassau which could be replicated with intelligent policing and reasonable political leadership in other suburban counties.
6. Strict enforcement of the law where gang
By Pat Young November 8, 2009 11:40 AM
Thank you for taking the time to answer my question. My next line of inquiry would lead to Suffolk county and what they have done, since that is where I am from. But, I don't want to squander your time. Thanks again.
By Bryan J. November 8, 2009 01:32 PM
Pat,
Does the Nassau County Sheriff participate in ICE's 287(g) jail screening program?
By Rob November 8, 2009 10:08 PM