The senseless violence that continues to plague Ciudad Juarez touched the U.S. Consulate General community last weekend. Several gunmen barged in to a child’s birthday party and killed three men, including one of the consulate’s locally hired staff, who worked in the maintenance section. To the best of my knowledge, he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, celebrating the birthday of one of his neighbor’s children and tried to calm the gunmen down to avoid any danger. Instead, the gunmen shot and killed him in front of his wife, children, and other party guests.
What happened to this man, whose only crime was to attend a neighborhood birthday party, is entirely too common in Juarez. Despite all the violence in Juarez, however, I was always impressed by how many Juarenses loved their town and were working hard to make it a better place, a place where you didn’t have to worry about this kind of violence. I wish them all the success in the world, because the violence continues to take innocent people from this world and to hurt those left behind. Juarenses deserve better, they deserve a life without the constant fear and grief that the violence inflicts on the city.
So please keep his wife, children, friends, the Consulate community, and those working to make Juarez a better place in your thoughts and prayers. Sending lots of love and strength down to Juarez. Maybe it will make a difference. Certainly can’t hurt.