By Roy Ortega
On the morning of Saturday, August, 3, 2019, one of America's most tragic and most violent mass shootings brushed dangerously close to my family and me. Two years later, I remain haunted by a simple decision to turn one direction instead of another.
The day started typically for a Saturday. At about 8:30 a.m., I woke up and headed to the Eastwood Recreation Center to do my morning workout. Since earlier in the year, I had felt my aging, 66-year old body screaming for better care. So I jumped in my car and headed a few blocks towards Album Park where the center was located.
But half way there, I had a change of heart and decided to turn the other direction for a cup of decaf at the Starbucks coffee shop at the Fountains.
The day was calm, sunshiny and relatively balmy. In El Paso's desert climate, balmy means hot and comfortably dry so I chose to sit outside on the patio while I drank my coffee and read the latest news headlines on my iPad.
Somehow, I lost track of time while reading op-eds, comments and opinions on a number of social media outlets. Before long, more than an hour had passed. At about 9:45 a.m., I peered across Hawkins Blvd. and remembered I needed a few items from the Walmart store just beyond Cielo Vista Mall.
But wait. I had not done my morning workout yet so again I decided to drive my car the other direction toward the rec center. The Walmart run, I decided, could wait until later.
Fateful decision.
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| The Walmart shooter |
At about 10:15 a.m., a deranged, hateful 21-year old Trump follower walked up to the Walmart store at Cielo Vista carrying an AK-47 fully automatic weapon and started killing shoppers. One by one, the killer aimed his weapon at anyone who looked Hispanic and fired round after round into their bodies. Among the first victims were several people standing outside the store conducting a fundraiser for their athletic team. By the time the killing spree ended, 22-people were dead. One person died in the months following the massacre.
By all accounts, the killer hated Hispanics. The previous night, he had set out from his home in the Dallas suburb of Allen, Texas and had driven more than 600-miles to literally hunt down Mexicans. A manifest he posted online just moments before the attack made it clear his intentions were motivated by pure hate. A devout follower of Donald J. Trump, he expressed extreme white supremacist sentiments in a rambling rant against immigrants.
About an hour after returning home from the rec center, I found myself sitting in front of my computer when I started seeing a string of online reports about a shooting at the Cielo Vista Walmart store. I quickly switched to the local TV stations for more information, but was dismayed to see nothing about the developing story on their broadcasts nor their online postings.
Within a few hours, it became clear this was an attack of massively tragic proportions. Men, women and children were reported to be among the dead. Gradually, the national news media began to light up with news reports on what had become the country's latest mass shooting episode. Fortunately, the shooter had been arrested within an hour of the massacre.
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| Walmart victim memorial |
I was stunned. Shocked. Dismayed. This was happening just a few blocks from my home.
The incident sparked an outpouring of community love and support for the victims, the likes of which I had never seen before in El Paso. A huge makeshift memorial was created at the site of the massacre and the entire city mobilized in a massive show unity against the racial hatred that victimized our community.
On this somber anniversary, my thoughts are with the families of the victims who have endured two years of grieving with little or no word on whether justice would be achieved quickly. At this writing, the court proceedings in pursuit of justice in the case are still in the pre-trial stage, delayed by the pandemic and legal maneuvering by defense attorneys.
Sadly, the culture of violence against immigrants and minorities in the U.S. continues unabated, propagated by a pervasive extremist mindset among many American politicians and their misguided followers. In the two years since the El Paso Walmart massacre, there have been numerous other racially-motived killings across the country. In other words, nothing has changed despite vows from politicians and government officials to impose stricter gun laws.
I am proud to see that my beloved city of El Paso has come together in a firm commitment to battle the forces of anger, hatred, evil and violence. It is a battle I am confident the good people of America will win.
Roy Ortega may be contacted at rortega54@elp.rr.com. Comments are welcome.
