Read our article Combat and Resist ICE Terror here.
Lorenzo Salgado Araujo, a 52-year-old Mexican immigrant, was murdered by ICE on his way to work in Houston, Texas, early in the morning on July 7.
Salgado Araujo provided for his three children and wife for the 35 years he lived in the United States. Salgado Araujo’s son, Ronaldo Salgado, described his father as “a hardworking Mexican man” who “did not deserve this.”
Salgado Araujo was picking up his construction crew the morning of July 7 when ICE stopped him in “a targeted enforcement operation” in Houston’s Greater East End, a majority Hispanic neighborhood.
DHS alleges ICE killed Salgado Araujo in self-defense. They say that Salgado Araujo attempted to hit an ICE vehicle and run over an ICE agent with his car. After shooting and killing Salgado Araujo, ICE took three of the construction workers that Araujo was driving out of the car and held them to the ground. Ronaldo Salgado said on Wednesday morning that no one has heard from those workers since.
The Houston Police Department was seen at the location of the murder but claims its officers were not involved in the ICE operation, only helping direct traffic in the area after the shooting.
The Democrat mafia mayor of Houston, John Whitmire, originally declined to comment and “referred all questions to Homeland Security,” according to NBC News. On Wednesday, Whitmire said the situation was “complex” and that the city would not conduct an independent investigation of Araujo’s murder.
During a press conference on Wednesday morning, Texas State Representative Gene Wu stated, “We’ve already heard stories that ICE is coming to people’s homes and taking their videos and deleting them” in the aftermath of the shooting.
Despite heavy rain, dozens gathered for a candlelight vigil and demonstration on the evening of July 7 in the neighborhood where the shooting took place. On July 8, hundreds gathered in Magnolia Park for a candlelight march and protest. On July 10, a family vigil was held in honor of Araujo in the morning with dozens rallying later that day outside Houston City Hall. On July 11, street protests again took place across the city. Protests also took place in San Antonio and Dallas demanding justice for Araujo.
The ICE murder of Salgado Araujo is the first reported immigration enforcement-related murder by shooting since Alex Pretti, an ICU nurse, was murdered in January of this year.
Araujo’s murder by shooting comes days after the July 1 shooting of Mexican immigrant Clemente Lara-Hernandez by ICE agents in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. ICE alleged Lara-Hernandez attempted to run over agents with his vehicle, but video evidence disproves that narrative. In the video, Lara-Hernandez can be seen surrounded by ICE vehicles when agents shattered his window before he drove away. Lara-Hernandez’s vehicle did not get close to hitting any of the agents, and the ICE agents only shot at him after he drove past them.
Both shootings have taken place after the recent ICE surge that began at the end of June.
Image: Lorenzo Salgado Araujo. Credit: GoFundMe hosted by LULAC Institute, Inc.
The Worker is an entirely volunteer-run revolutionary newspaper free from and radically antagonistic to corporate influence. We rely on the support of our readers to sustain our editorial line in service of the working class and the reconstitution of its party, the Communist Party. Make a one-time or recurring donation to our newspaper today:
Make a one-time donation
Make a monthly donation
Make a yearly donation
Choose an amount
Or enter a custom amount
Your contribution is appreciated.
Your contribution is appreciated.
Your contribution is appreciated.
