Two leading advocacy groups have announced a series of town halls across Texas to address the scourge of white supremacy and gun violence, both of which stole the lives of nearly two dozen people in El Paso earlier this month. “Today, Giffords: Courage to Fight Gun Violence and the Latino Victory Project launched ¡YA BASTA! Latinos Rise Against Gun Violence and Hate,” a press release from the groups said, “to raise awareness in the Latino community about the growing threats of gun violence and the white supremacist-based anti-Latino movement.”
The groups are expected to hold events in Dallas, Houston, San Antonio, and El Paso on August 22. “The El Paso town hall will be streamed live via NoticiasTelemundo.com and Noticias Telemundo’s YouTube, Facebook and Twitter pages as part of its recently-launched campaign #LatinoStrong, Unidos Contra el Odio,” the groups said. Founder Gabby Giffords, the former congresswoman who survived an assassination attempt against her life, and Latino Victory executive director Mayra Macías will be at the El Paso town hall, along with leaders like Rep. Veronica Escobar and Texas state Rep. Cesar Blanco.
“Our nation just witnessed the largest act of terror against the Latino community in modern American history, where a white supremacist took the lives of 22 innocent people in El Paso, Texas,” Macías said in the statement. “Now more than ever, we need to have an honest and transparent conversation about two of the most pressing issues affecting our country: the gun violence epidemic and the rise of the white-supremacy and anti-Latino movements.”
One victim, Margie Reckard, is being buried on Friday, with up to 1,000 mourners expected to attend following her husband opening the service up to the public because he has no other living family. But El Paso, and the nation, continue to reel because other Latinos say they’re living in fear they could be next. “A white man said his Latina wife from the Rio Grande Valley broke down after reading the shooter’s manifesto,” Adrian Carrasquillo reported. “She told him she’s sorry if their future kids are targets because of her.”
