A leader in Rochester’s Hispanic community says the mass shooting at a Walmart in El Paso, Texas, feels different than other shootings.
Julio Saenz is director of communications and development for the Ibero-American Action League, a nonprofit that focuses on issues affecting the region’s Hispanic population. Saenz expressed concern that incidents where Hispanic-looking people are targeted could become a trend.
“Everybody gets grouped together, and I mean, that’s not fair to anyone, but that’s what so dangerous about all this anti-immigrant rhetoric that’s been flooding the country these past few years,” said Saenz. “Especially with the shooting in Texas, it was targeted toward immigrants. It was just something that goes to another level of hate.”
Saenz said that the negative rhetoric toward immigrants over the last few years hurts the entire Latino population.
State prosecutors in El Paso will pursue the death penalty against the shooter.
