Last year, residents in Phoenix protested either for or against illegal immigration. The event that kicked off all the protests was the death of rancher Robert Krentz. Till this day, it was assumed that Mr. Krentz was shot by an illegal immigrant drug smuggler. However, this assumption has raised flags among Latino groups.
“The people who shot him were probably undocumented immigrants, but it started when his dog barked at them. Latinos are very sensitive to dogs barking and this probably made the migrants think they were being attacked,” says Cecilia Maldonado of Chicanos Unidos Arizona. “Either way, it’s a tragedy and we feel for Robert’s family. However, the correct information needs to come out.”
Manuel Longoria of Nuestros Reconquistos says he feels bad for Krentz’s murder (as well as the murder of his dog), but believes that part of the frustration is that Krentz was working on Aztlán, the area of the United States stolen from Mexico. “Murder is never the way to solve things. However, Americans put themselves at risk for occupying stolen land. It would be a lot safer if they didn’t.”
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