A short documentary that portrays the family life of an immigrant beaten to death by Border Patrol agents at the San Ysidro border crossing last year will be presented on Friday by a community group.
The documentary is about how the death of Anastasio Hernandez has affected his family since he was killed on May 28, 2010. The video presentation will be made on Friday May 20 at 6:30 pm at the offices of American Friends Service Committee, located at 3275 Market St., Suite B, San Diego.
The video is part of the monthly series “Cine en el Barrio,” whose purpose is “to help raise awareness in our community using film to create dialogue, a call to organize,” said Enrique de la Cruz, member of Colectivo Zapatista, which organizes the event.
The documentary, produced by the Human Rights Committee of City Heights, tells in 18 minutes the testimonies of the relatives of Hernandez, whose death caused great consternation. In fact, the video of Hernandez’s beating at the hands of about 20 Border Patrol agents was recorded with a camera phone at the port of San Ysidro and has been widely used in sites like YouTube.
“For us it is important that our community knows the case of the death of Anastasio Hernandez,” said De la Cruz. “Just as this happened to him, it has happened to many of our people and it can continue happening if we don’t raise our voices.”
After the presentation there will be a forum to discuss Operation Safe Communities, whose mission is supposedly the mass deportation of undocumented criminals but has focused on peaceful Latino communities.
“There are policies that unfortunately are helping to promote fear in our community,” said De la Cruz.
A year after the death of Hernandez, “the situation for immigrants has not changed much, it is even more difficult,” said Pedro Rios, a spokesman for American Friends Service Committee, an immigrant advocacy organization.
Rios said that President Barack Obama “is not showing good faith changes to create a relief for immigrants.”
So far, no news of what has happened to the Border Patrol agents who beat Hernandez, Rios said.
The Consulate General of Mexico in San Diego, in a statement released in March, said that lawyers for the Hernandez family filed a civil lawsuit seeking financial compensation for the killing.
The statement said the consulate will continue to advocate for justice, something that many in the Mexican community of San Diego also are demanding.
“Anastasio’s case presents us with impunity, violence against our community,” said De la Cruz. “The guy was begging for help but people could do nothing, and that in the eyes of the community not only creates fear, but anger. It is important that people know that behind a dead immigrant, there’s a community that demands justice, it is important to promote the idea that justice has not been met. We are still waiting for justice for Anastasio and his family.”
