El Paso shooting stokes fear felt in US Hispanic communities

WASHINGTON — Latino leaders continued to speak out Monday about the fear felt in Hispanic communities in the United States following the mass shooting in El Paso where the gunman left a manifesto that described immigration as an invasion on the Southern border.

“Hispanic Americans and immigrants have been directly and violently attacked,” said Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

Castro said the shooting in El Paso was a crime of “intentional violence to strike fear in our communities.”

The El Paso shooting was one of two deadly attacks over the weekend, and one of three that have taken place in the past week. The Texas shooting left 22 dead. There were nine more victims just 13 hours later in Dayton, Ohio.

Last week, three were killed when a gunman opened fire at a garlic festival in Gilroy, California.

Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nev., said the innocent lives lost were “taken by hate.”

“In less than a week we’ve had three communities forever scarred by mass shootings,” Cortez Masto said. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

The shootings have also elevated the national debate on gun control, with Democrats urging the Senate to take up a House-passed bill on background checks.

Rep. Mark Amodei, the lone Republican in the Nevada congressional delegation, said he wanted to give law enforcement time to gather the facts before judging, assessing the causes and identifying solutions.

“That is what I will continue to do so as to make sure the causes are clear before selecting solutions,” Amodei said.

Aside from gun control, the role of hate speech in recent mass shootings was front and center.

Gunmen in the El Paso and Gilroy shootings had ties to white supremacists. Although police have not ruled the California shooting a hate crime, El Paso law enforcement cited racist rants and ideology as the motive for the tragedy there.

“This Anglo man came here to kill Hispanics. I’m outraged and you should be too,” said El Paso Sheriff Richard Wiles.

“In this day and age, with all the serious issues we face, we are still confronted with people who will kill another for the sole reason of the color of their skin,” Wiles said.

Latino lawmakers and Democrats have blamed President Donald Trump’s racially charged rhetoric for spurring the violence against immigrants.

Trump, in campaign speeches, called Mexican immigrants “rapists” and drug dealers, and he has referred to Central American asylum seekers as an invasion on our southern border.

At the White House on Monday, Trump said that “in one voice, our nation must condemn racism, bigotry and white supremacy.”

But the president did not acknowledge that his own rhetoric has become part of the national debate.

Several people killed in the El Paso attack were Mexican nationals, shopping at a Walmart across the border from Juarez, Mexico.

Trump offered his condolences to Mexican President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador and “all the people of Mexico for the loss of their citizens in the El Paso shooting.”

Following the shooting, Castro said he had heard reports that some victims were refusing to seek treatment because of their immigration status.

The Hispanic Caucus urged victims and the families of those killed or wounded to seek help immediately from community groups that were there to assist them.

“We will do what a great community does: stand up to racism and xenophobia and come together to take care of one another,” said Mario Carrillo with America’s Voice, an immigrant advocacy group with offices in El Paso, Las Vegas and other cities.

Contact Gary Martin at gmartin@reviewjournal.com or 202-662-7390. Follow @garymartindc on Twitter.