Commentary:
A day after Thanksgiving Day, Joaquin Luna Lerna Jr., an honor roll, 18-year old Senior at Juarez-Lincoln High School in Mission, Texas, wrote a few notes to his family, put on a suit and tie, and bid his family members goodbye right before he shot himself on the head. His untimely and tragic death has left his family and those who knew him devastated. He is described as a bright student with a bright future ahead of him. But in spite of his good grades, active life in church, and a strong dedication to his family, Joaquin’s goodbye notes, according to his family members, tell the story of young man who believed his dreams as an undocumented immigrant were coming to an end. According to his family, if the federal DREAM Act had passed December 2010, this loss could have been prevented. The following are statements by Angelica Salas, executive director for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles (CHIRLA), and Joaquin’s older brother Diyer Mendoza.
Angelica Salas: “We mourn the untimely and tragic death of what could have been America’s next engineer. Our prayers go out to Joaquin’s family and friends who must now confront a life without their shining star. At 18 Joaquin was an example of what hundreds of thousands of undocumented students achieve in spite of a life condemned to the shadows: he excelled in school, played the guitar, was an active member at the local church, and was eager to turn a blueprint he had drawn into his mom’s dream house.
Joaquin came to the U.S. as a six-month old baby and had done what all of us ask of immigrants to do, play by the rules. Congress’ failure to pass the federal DREAM Act in December 2010 was a blow to Joaquin’s hopeful spirit according to all who knew him. At some point between then and now, Joaquin’s concerns over his immigration status became so grave he thought it best to go away before the next dawn.
A precious life has been lost and America should ask itself why. Joaquin’s death is a tragedy and a direct indictment on the US government’s failure to deal humanely, justly, and practically, with an immigration maelstrom threatening to sink the very values we hold dear. We take this opportunity to call on the Obama Administration to do what it can to bring relief to our families and communities and to offer dreamers like Joaquin a real opportunity to make of their dreams our nation’s living treasure. And to young people everywhere, we encourage them to talk to others, to join a support group on campus or the community, and to keep hope alive.”
Diyer Mendoza: “We are heartbroken by what has happened. He left so many memories for us to cherish. Joaquin was loved by everyone. He was all about school, church, and my mom. He was an extraordinary brother, talented, never got in trouble with the police. Then, the DREAM Act did not pass and his college acceptance and financial aid letters started asking about his immigration status. Joaquin’s biggest worry became that after all those years in college he would end up without a job. He had a dream, the American Dream, but he felt his immigration status prevented him from reaching it. Ironically, he made the final decision because he didn’t want to let my mom down; he wanted to be the best for everybody. I just hope other students in his situation speak to others about what they are feeling before taking this drastic step.”