Community Corner

Holocaust Center to Screen Film on Long Island Hate Crime

'Deputized' explores 2008 murder of Ecuadorean immigrant Marcelo Lucero by a group of youths in Patchogue.

Long Island Wins and the Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center of Nassau County (“HMTC”) will co-sponsor a program offering multi-dimensional perspectives about the sensibilities leading to hate crimes on Sunday at 2 p.m. at the HMTC in Glen Cove.

The program will begin with a screening of the documentary film, Deputized, produced and directed by Susan Hagedorn. The film explores racially-motivated murder of Ecuadorian immigrant Marcelo Lucero by a group of youths in Patchogue in 2008.

Lucero, 37, was walking to a friend’s house when he was assaulted by seven teenagers in a Patchogue train station parking lot. His violent death shocked New York and thrust the issue of anti-Hispanic sentiment on Long Island into the national spotlight.

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“The documentary, Deputized, explores the cultivation of hatred by an entire community and the consequences," said Long Island Wins Executive Director Maryann Sinclair Slutsky, whose organization focuses immigration issues on Long Island and beyond. "It portrays the interplay of racism, fear and politics in the ‘deputization’ of young men as killers in the service of a community’s values."

An interactive discussion with a panel of experts will be held following the film screening. Panelists include:
  • Joselo Lucero — As Outreach Coordinator for the Hagedorn Foundation, Joselo visits middle and high schools on Long Island and across the NY metro region to give presentations on how to prevent bullying and hate-crimes. Since his brother, Marcelo Lucero, was murdered in a hate crime in 2008 in Patchogue, NY, Joselo has been active in community projects to empower youth and instill leadership qualities. Joselo is involved with Long Island based diversity programs, Light Through My Eyes and Embrace Our Differences. Joselo is bilingual in English and Spanish.
  • Hon. Jon Cooper — In November 1999, Jon was elected Legislator for Suffolk County’s 18th Legislative District in Huntington.  He was elected Majority Leader of the Suffolk County Legislature for six consecutive terms, making him the longest-serving Majority Leader in the history of Suffolk County.  As a result of mandatory term limits, Jon retired from office on January 1, 2012.  Since 1978, Jon has run Spectronics Corporation, a company based in Westbury that is one of the largest manufacturing firms on Long Island.  He is also an active HMTC Board Director.
  • Hendel Leiva — Hendel is a community organizer for Welcoming Long Island, an initiative of Long Island Wins. Hendel has previously worked in his hometown of Brentwood on various community related initiatives, including having served as the assistant campaign manager for the Brentwood Campaign for Quality Education. He graduated in 2010 from the University of Albany with a bachelor’s degree in English/Latin American studies. In 2012, he received his master’s degree in public administration from the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
  • Patrick Young, Esq. — Patrick is the program director of the Central American Refugee Center (CARECEN) in Hempstead and Brentwood. He is also the supervising attorney for the Westchester Hispanic Coalition. Patrick is currently special professor of law at Hofstra University School of Law where he teaches immigration law. In addition, he was a founding chairman of the Long Island Immigrant Alliance (LIIA), where he currently serves as vice chairman.
Steven Markowitz, HMTC Chairman, said he is proud to cosponsor the program with Long Island Wins to educate the community and spread lasting change.  

"Hate, whether it manifests itself in physical attacks on members of particular groups, or defacing property with swastikas," said Markowitz, "has no place in our society.”


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