The Daily Moth 8-9-2019
Man with rifle arrested at Walmart in Missouri; Houston gunman kills two people on freeway; El Paso terrorist suspect said he targeted “Mexicans”; 17-year-old CODA from New Mexico shot and killed; Deaf woman shares account of abusive relationship; Deaf Protectors opposed to new telescope on Mauna Kea
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Hello, welcome to The Daily Moth! It is Friday, August 9. Ready for news?
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Man with rifle arrested at Walmart in Missouri; Houston gunman kills two people on freeway; El Paso terrorist suspect said he targeted “Mexicans”
Here are three news briefs in the U.S.
The first — yesterday at a Walmart in Springfield, Missouri a 20-year-old man, Dmitriy N. Andreychenko, was arrested after he entered the store with a large rifle, more than 100 bullets, and wearing body armor and military fatigues.
He pushed a shopping cart around and recorded himself on a phone. A store manager pulled a fire alarm. As customers exited the store, Andreychenko tried to leave through an emergency exit, but an off-duty fireman who was armed detained him at gunpoint until officers arrived. He was arrested on suspicion of making a terroristic threat in the first degree.
Police said the man’s intentions was not to cause peace or comfort and that he is lucky that he is still alive. It is not clear why he went in the store with a gun and recorded himself.
The second news — there is a manhunt for a gunman in Houston who shot and killed two men on a freeway after a car crash.
Police said the gunman, who is in his 20’s, drove his car into the victims’ car, causing it to spin out. The gunman got out of his car and fired several rounds into the car, killing both men. They were 23 and 33 years old.
There was another motorist who saw the shooting. He said the suspect turned towards him so he retrieved his gun and fired several rounds at the suspect, which caused him to flee into his vehicle and drive off. There was another person in the suspect’s vehicle. They have not been found yet as of this afternoon.
Police said they found narcotics in the victims’ car, but they do not know if it has any connection with the shooting.
Houston police said the gunman is a thin Hispanic male who is about 5’7. He was wearing a red shirt and drove off in a newer model, dark colored 4-door sedan.
The third news — the El Paso terrorist suspect Patrick Crusius confessed to police that he was the shooter when he was arrested and later said he was targeting “Mexicans.”
Authorities said they believe he posted an online posting that had anti-immigrant and anti-Hispanic messages. The posting said those viewpoints were already there before Donald Trump became president and that if someone blamed the president, it was “fake news.”
Crusius drove 10 hours from near Dallas to El Paso to shoot and kill 22 people at a Walmart. Most of the victims were Hispanic and eight of them were Mexican nationals.
Missouri Walmart: https://www.foxnews.com/us/missouri-suspect-idd
https://www.ky3.com/content/news/Heavy-police-presence-at-Walmart-Neighborhood-Market-in-south-Springfield-528602951.html
Houston: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/two-killed-shooting-houston-freeway-rush-hour-manhunt-underway-gunman-n1040766
https://twitter.com/houstonpolice/status/1159835431116124160
El Paso: https://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/police-el-paso-shooting-suspect-targeted-mexicans-64886138?cid=clicksource_4380645_null_headlines_hed
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17-year-old CODA from New Mexico shot and killed
An unexpected and heartbreaking incident happened last Saturday night in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. Tristan Huizar, son of two Deaf parents, Robert Huizar and Heather Lujan, was shot and killed in a white sedan that crashed. A witness said that Huizar was shot in the stomach and neck.
Police were called to the scene at 5:20pm on Saturday. The rescuers tried to revive Huizar, but he died. The detectives are investigating this situation. As of right now, the police do not have any information on the suspect or the motive.
The Rio Rancho Police Department is asking for anyone with information related to this shooting to contact them.
To support the family and the funeral costs, you can find a link to the GoFundMe page in the transcript.
The Daily Moth reached out to the Huizar/Lujan family to share a comment. The family wanted to thank our Deaf community for the love and support that has been pouring out. This is what is helping the family to get through this.
A close family friend mentioned that Huizar was a happy, friendly, and funny person. His family mentioned that he did want to be an interpreter for our Deaf community.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/tristan-javier-huizar
https://www.kob.com/albuquerque-news/rio-rancho-community-mourns-slain-teenager-/5447178/
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Deaf woman shares account of abusive relationship
Last night a Deaf woman from Florida, Hazel Ramirez, posted two public vlogs in which she said she was in an abusive relationship. The vlogs are about 30 minutes in total and included graphic images of injuries that she said was inflicted by her ex-partner. She identified him as Mathew Silvay.
The vlog was shared over 1,500 times within the first 24 hours. She accused Silvay of committing multiple acts of physical abuse, which included battering, choking, body-slamming, being pistol-whipped, and having a gun forced in her mouth.
Ramirez also described abuse towards other family members and different forms of abuse. Her vlog also included recorded video conversations with Silvay. In one of the conversations, Silvay said he wished he could shoot Ramirez and in another he said he would punch her.
Ramirez said she is now in a court battle against Silvay to get custody of a child and asked for donations to raise $5,000 to keep her lawyer.
Ramirez said there were several people who witnessed the abuse but did not intervene, describing them as bystanders. She named one of them as Rocco Lauricella, who is known as a Deaf musician.
Many in the Deaf community know of Ramirez and Silvay because of a viral incident in May 2018 when they were together. They accused a man of punching both their service dog and Ramirez, who was pregnant at the time, in a plane.
The Daily Moth reached out to Ramirez and received her permission to discuss this on Moth. She said she did want to get the police involved during their relationship, but backed off.
Ramirez said the allegations of domestic violence is now a part of the court case.
The Daily Moth reached out to Silvay to provide a comment, but he declined. I also talked with a person who supports Silvay — the person said Ramirez’s stories are false.
The Daily Moth reached out to Lauricella to provide a comment on being named as a bystander. Lauricella said he has seen an incident of Silvay being on top of Ramirez and a small bruise the next day on her lip. He said that the whole relationship was toxic. He said it caused him to feel “unspeakable” and that he didn’t really know what to do in that kind of situation. He said there is a lot more to it and that he is not a bad person.
Ramirez shared on her Facebook wall an account of a woman who said she used to be in a violent relationship with Silvay in 2016 and the three years prior to that. Ramirez said, “Not the first time, he did that to many ladies!”
Hundreds of people on social media shared statements of support for Ramirez and anger at the situation.
The Daily Moth reached out to the Abused Deaf Women’s Advocacy Services (ADWAS) and talked with Marie Goodman, a Deaf Advocate for the National Deaf DV Hotline.
ALEX:
There was a viral vlog by a woman, Hazel Ramirez, who described her experiences of being in a violent relationship. She included images. It’s all over the internet. She mentioned that there were bystanders, individuals who saw things but did not intervene. I wonder what is ADWAS’ perspective on bystanders? Is it a crime as well? What is the impact if someone saw abuse but did not intervene?
MARIE GOODMAN:
It is not a crime to be a bystander but the reason why they don’t say anything could be because it’s out of fear. Or they think, “it’s not my problem” or “it’s none of my business.” They don’t want to interfere. They feel like someone else will take action. Or they feel they might make the situation worse. Or they don’t feel qualified to intervene, that there should be someone with authority to do this. There are various reasons. But there are different ways to intervene without risks. You can approach a manager or a landlord and tell them there is a situation. You could secretly record it with a phone so it can be used as evidence. If the person who caused harm left or is not around, you can approach the survivor and provide support or offer support. You could do that. Tell them that it’s not their fault, that this shouldn’t happen.
ALEX:
How would you recommend people to respond to others who create a vlog that reveals previous experiences? Some might say they are faking it, others might offer support. Some might doubt it. Others say there are two sides. Some will throw their full support. How should people respond to DV survivors’ stories?
GOODMAN:
Well, it’s not easy to know what to say, especially when it is a family member or a friend. It’s not easy to respond. But you should believe, always believe whatever they say. That’s their side of the story and it does involve domestic violence. It’s important to show support and not judgment. Always believe their stories and never minimize their story. Because with DV, there is only one side of the story and it is the survivor’s side. There are different ways you can talk with survivors. “I believe you.” “That’s brave of you to reveal your story.” “It’s not your fault.” “You don’t deserve this.” “I care and I am here to listen and help in any way.” Or you can say, “I’m sorry this happened, it shouldn’t happen to you.” Continue to give support and avoid judgment. Check in regularly. Know your resources and give it. Also know that we have a Deaf DV hotline that you can refer to. You can contact us and we’ll give you a plan for safety.
Alex: Thank you for your time and for explaining. There were several other Deaf organizations that work in domestic and sexual violence advocacy who put out statements of support for Ramirez on social media.
Ramirez said her next court appearance will be on August 15. The link to the vlog is below in the transcript.
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[Image of a logo of a purple circle with two hands holding each other] Text reads: thedeafhotline.org. 855-812-1001. NationalDeafhotline@adwas.org
Vlog: https://www.facebook.com/hexyyx3/posts/2625999590746022
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Deaf Protectors opposed to new telescope on Mauna Kea
There is a large protest going on top of Mauna Kea (MK) on Hawai'i, the Big Island.
A group of astronomers want to build the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT), which they say will be one of the world’s largest and most powerful telescopes. The TMT project costs $1.4 billion and was made possible by private donors.
The proposed site on Mauna Kea for the TMT is also considered as the most sacred place to Native Hawaiians. They believe that it is the genesis of Hawaiians and that it is a burial ground for their reverent ancestors. To scientists, they see that site as the best location in the world to observe the stars and study the origins of our universe.
From the base of the ocean floor to above sea level, Mauna Kea is the highest mountain in the world by 33,000 ft. This mountain is a dormant volcano.
There are already 13 working telescopes from 11 different countries on top of that mountain. TMT will be significantly larger than the others that are already built there.
The construction for the TMT was supposed to start in July, but has been halted because of the protest.
The group of people who are stopping this construction prefer to be called protectors, not protestors. One protector said in a CNN article that they are not against science or the idea of this project. They are just against where it will be built.
This protest has been going on for a while. It started in 2014, but the recent demonstration was the biggest one of them all. About 2,000 people are on Mauna Kea right now.
The Daily Moth learned that there was a group of deaf people that call themselves, Nā Kia'i Kuli, which means “The Deaf Protectors”, who went to visit for a day. They performed a section of a Hawaiian song in ASL in front of the hearing protectors. This video was when they were practicing.
VIDEO, Credit: Yvette Ibarra-Keohuloa
We reached out to Joy Enos, one of the leaders of the deaf protectors, for an interview about the experience there and how the group of deaf people were able to get involved.
JOY ENOS:
I really enjoyed the rich experience I had there. The weather is unpredictable there. There could be rain, cold, hot, then cold again. I didn’t really prepare for the unpredictable weather. The school there is beautiful. They also had kids who did homeschooling. There was plenty of food for the kupuna (the elderly people), and they are the ones who stay in the front lines and would get arrested so they are in the red group. We were informed that our group of deaf people visiting Mauna Kea would not get arrested so we were in the green group. When the group arrived, we got to learn through the school. We have what’s called mana wahine, who were two Hawai’ian women who shared stories about their experiences and about protecting the Mauna Kea and why they were arrested. It was a really rich experience. They provided two interpreters. I really learned a lot and I feel like the Mauna Kea is an inspiration for me. It reminds me of my grandmother. My dad was a Hawai’ian and so was my grandmother. There’s a lot of history there of worshipping spirits, through aumakua which means worship of the spirits, lands, the mountains, oceans and animals. I feel that it’s already a part of me. I felt it was important to be there.
RENCA:
We asked if Joy would know how long the protectors will stay on Mauna Kea.
JOY:
It depends on how long. If you want the court’s approval with the proper paperwork that they are not going to build the TMT, the telescope. Then they would achieve a peace of mind. If they’re just talking and two years pass without action, then they’re going to stay put and continue blocking the road. They do this because people can bring in the TMT supplies from the trucks which is why we’re blocking that road.
RENCA:
We asked Joy to explain a little bit about what they taught the hearing protectors on Mauna Kea.
JOY:
Another thing we did was teach through a performance, the kupuna, about the gift of ASL. We did the eo ea and the Kapu Aloha.
*Sings ‘Kapu Aloha’*
Doing this, we’re showing aloha, respect and kindness. Ingesting alcohol and drugs were forbidden within the group. It was about respect and celebrating. It was a really beautiful sight there.
Some of the hearing people yelled out ‘kapu aloha!’ while some of them clapped 3 times.
Clap, clap, clap, eo!
That means ‘yes’!
We’re deaf so how can we hear? We can see them clapping, but we were initially unsure why they did it. So the interpreters came up with an idea of waving our hands 3 times then pounding a fist into the air.
Wave, wave, wave, eo!
We created our own version and taught it to hearing people. They really liked it too!
RENCA:
Thank you, Joy for sharing your experience. You will also notice in the photos of this sign (shows sign), the deaf protectors chose this sign to symbolize Mauna Kea.
We reached out to Gerald Farm, the one who made it possible for the group of deaf people to join in for the day at Mauna Kea. We asked him to share a statement.
“Mauna a Wakea, or more popularly known as Mauna Kea. Home to Poli’ahu (Goddess of the Snow, Lilinoe (Goddess of Mist) and Waiau (Goddess of Lake Waiau). A very sacred mountain to the Hawaiian culture. This is why we protect and stand firmly for our sacred Mauna.
After much thought and prayer I arranged for an unforgettable day for our deaf brothers and sisters...At 6pm, the moment captured on video (gone viral) showed a special moment of acceptance of nā kia’i kuli (The Deaf Protectors) on the Mauna...That moment was so touching and I was told there was not a dry eye in the audience.” -- Gerald Farm
RENCA:
We also reached out to Torrey Mahealani Ho-Ching, one of the volunteer interpreters who flew in from Maui to share her experience.
TEXT:
“To go through the raw emotions of a Kānaka Maoli is one thing, but when I can bring my culture, heritage and way of life to the Kuli Kānaka community and witness them with tears streaming from their eyes as mine do. I know that I have helped to impact their lives on such a deep, rich level that they can make the connection to their ancestors that are there to embrace and uplift them as humans it is completely humbling and warming to my na’au my soul.” -- Torrey Mahealani Ho-Ching
RENCA: Joy mentioned that you could make a donation of things, medicine, food, or money. If you are interested, an article by MTV lists out all the various ways of how you can support the Native Hawaiians. Link is in the transcript.
To keep yourself updated with The Deaf Protectors, you can check out their Facebook page.
Famous celebrities such as Jason Momoa and Dwayne Johnson are involved with this protest. Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren expressed support to stand against TMT.
The University of Hawaii supports the building of the TMT because they said it is a higher pursuit of knowledge and advancement in the field of astronomy.
Photo of Deaf Protectors Credit: Yvette Ibarra-Keohuloa
THE DEAF PROTECTORS site:
https://www.facebook.com/thedeafprotectors/
DONATION LINK:
http://www.mtv.com/news/3133883/hawaii-protests-mauna-kea-telescope/
https://www.cnn.com/2019/07/21/us/hawaii-mauna-kea-protests/index.html
HuffPost: https://bit.ly/33rMCKT
https://www.cnn.com/2019/08/02/us/hawaii-mauna-kea-jason-momoa-telescope-trnd/index.html
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That is all for this week. Thank you for watching The Daily Moth. Have a wonderful weekend and stay with the light!