Group leaves letter at Memphis Army recruitment office demanding justice for Vanessa Guillen
Laura TestinoMore than 100 Memphis protesters marched the mile from Binghampton Park to the U.S. Army Recruiting office off Poplar Avenue calling for justice for Spc. Vanessa Guillen.
The group is demanding a congressional investigation into the death and alleged assault of the 20-year-old soldier and that more protections be offered to soldiers and women in the military who face sexual assault.
"How as a nation do we ignore the fact that someone who fought for our country was murdered? When she was supposed to be protected and safe." Orozco, who asked to only be identified by her first name, continued reading from a letter outside the recruiting office: "Is that how we say thank you to our troops and women who sacrifice their lives for our country? Do we hate our Latina women or our women in the military?"
As part of the Saturday protest, the group left the letter outside the Army recruiting office at N. Humes Street and Poplar Avenue, along with several signs calling for justice for Guillen. They pinned teal ribbons to several of the posters, a sign of support for victims and survivors of sexual assault.
"If you can't protect them, don't recruit them," the group chanted.
Guillen was last seen alive in April. Her mutilated remains were found in late June, several weeks after her murder near Ft. Hood where she was stationed, according to USA Today.
More:Ten weeks: A timeline of the search for Vanessa Guillen
Within five days of her disappearance, investigators had focused on Spc. Aaron Robinson as the primary suspect.
But developing enough evidence to lock him up took months, senior Army criminal investigators said Friday, as they detailed how Robinson fled his barracks last month as officials closed in. Robinson obtained a weapon and died by suicide before police could arrest him on June 30.
Army Sec. Ryan McCarthy has ordered an independent review of the command climate at Ft. Hood.
Guillen's death has put under a spotlight the Army's handling of her disappearance amid concerns that she had also been sexually harassed at the base.
Guillen's family members have maintained that Guillen was sexually harassed by superiors at Fort Hood. Those claims even sparked a viral hashtag called #IamVanessaGuillen on social media, which many soldiers have used to share their stories of sexual harassment and assault on military installations.
In the letter left at the Memphis recruiting office, Orozco asked: "If this happens to Guillen's family, who else in the military service is suffering or being hurt? We march in peace."
The group made three demands, calling for a congressional investigation into Guillen's case, more protections for U.S. soldiers, "such as firemen and police," and more protection for women in the military with regard to sexual assault.
About a dozen Memphis Police Department cars joined the protest on Poplar Avenue on the way toward the recruiting office, replacing some of the protesters who were blocking traffic with their own cars. MPD officers followed the group back, driving in the lane between the protesters, who were on the right, and the flow of traffic, which was moving in one lane on the left.
Quetzalcoatl Danza Azteca led a performance and then group dance back at the park, which was followed by a spoken word from Roberto Alfaro.
Stephanie, one of the performers who asked to be identified by her first name, said she was personally "really happy" that they chose to perform for the Guillen protest.
"As Mexicans and Latinos, we get some of the backlash between everyone," she said.
Stephanie translated for Apache, another one of the performers: "As a whole group, we are for supporting all forms of activism. (This protest) is not only our ethnicity, but a big problem for us."
USA Today Network contributed.
Laura Testino covers education and children's issues for the Commercial Appeal. Reach her at laura.testino@commercialappeal.com or 901-512-3763. Find her on Twitter: @LDTestino