Family seeks U.S. accountability for 2008 anti-Latino murder at IACHR hearing

At a public hearing in Washington, D.C., Joselo Lucero spoke before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, pressing the United States to accept responsibility for the 2008 stabbing death of his brother Marcelo, an Ecuadorian migrant. Marcelo was attacked near the Patchogue train station by seven teenagers calling themselves the “Caucasian Crew,” who shouted racist insults before one of them fatally stabbed him.

The case, Oswaldo Marcelo Lucero et al. v. United States, is the first to be presented before the IACHR alleging that U.S. policies foster a climate of anti-Latino hatred. Lucero described the lasting trauma to his family and cited a rise in hate crimes against Latinos in Suffolk County during that period. Attorney Rafaela Uribe and representatives from LatinoJustice requested that the commission find U.S. liability, award financial reparations, and implement measures to protect migrant dignity.