HOUSTON — For almost four months, the sidewalk where Lorenzo Salgado Araujo died has served as an evolving shrine to the memory of a Latino working man: a jersey from his favorite Mexican soccer team , bottles of Modelo beer and red Gatorade, orange and yellow marigolds, skull-emblazoned votive candles and Virgin of Guadalupe statues draped with glinting rosaries.
Recently, the memorial to the 52-year-old builder and father of three sons has featured a new decoration: “I Voted” stickers. Now, there’s hundreds of them.
In a state that serves as the frontline of the Trump administration’s controversial efforts to deport hundreds of thousands of undocumented immigrants, the shooting of Salgado Araujo by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer in early July is playing a role in turning out voters for competitive midterm elections that could decide the balance of power in Congress and are widely seen as a referendum on the president’s policies.
“I Voted” stickers began appearing at the memorial on Oct. 19, the day early voting started in Texas, when Salgado Araujo’s oldest son, Ronaldo, visited the scene and placed his sticker on the wall.
“I am beyond touched that this community and that the entire city is voting with my dad in mind,” the 29-year-old teacher said during a visit to the memorial days later, when scores more stickers had already appeared. “I didn’t realize it would grow this big.”
Texas’s major cities have seen historic early voting turnout in recent days, including what officials described as a surge in places like the majority Latino Magnolia Park precinct where Salgado Araujo was killed.
Next to stickers on the memorial, voters have written messages of hope for the midterms: “We voted for a better future,” “Don’t tell someone that you love them & vote for people that hurt them,” “Avenge with your vote” and “Voting for those who can’t vote — daughter of an immigrant.”
On Wednesday afternoon, Mexican immigrant José Trinidad Rojas Pliego added a bouquet to the growing memorial honoring his late boss.
“All the people are supportive,” said Rojas Pliego, 51, as his wife added her voter sticker to hundreds adorning the sign that said “We are Lorenzo.”
Salgado Araujo had lived in the U.S. for almost 35 years, his family said, and was working with lawyers to acquire a work permit when he was shot.
“I hope there will be justice,” Rojas Pliego said.
“He’s looking down on everybody supporting him and voting in his memory due to the tragedy,” said Rojas Pliego’s wife, Apolonia Martinez, wearing a T-shirt that said “MAGA: Mexicans Ain’t Going Anywhere.”
“We need a change for all the immigrants.”
Rojas Pliego recalled the moments on July 7 when an ICE agent opened fire on their work van, fatally striking Salgado Araujo through the window.
“They didn’t have lights or anything. The bullet passed right by me,” Rojas Pliego said on Wednesday, pointing to his side.
He gestured to a nearby barbershop parking lot where he said agents cuffed his hands and feet, detaining him and two other workers who had been in the van.
ICE and the Department of Homeland Security claimed the agent fired in self-defense after Salgado Araujo ignored commands and attempted to ram an agency vehicle. Rojas Pliego and family attorneys insisted the agent fired immediately without warning and that no officers were in front of the van. State and federal agencies are investigating, but none of the agents have been charged.
“They shot him but they put us in jail. Why didn’t they jail him?” Rojas Pliego said of Salgado Araujo.
Rojas Pliego was released from detention after a month and went straight to the memorial to pay his respects. He testified last month before a Harris County grand jury considering the ICE shooting that’s expected to decide whether an indictment is merited next month. He now wears an ankle monitor, and said federal officials are still trying to deport him. He applied for a U visa issued to crime victims who assist with prosecutions. The process could take years.
Rojas Pliego said he’s struggling to find work. Coming to the memorial was a priority.
He attached a handwritten note to his bouquet:
“Although I cannot vote, my wife cast her vote with you in mind, Lorenzo, and for everyone who has lost a loved one to ICE. May we never lack the humanity to stand up for our fellow human beings.”
Democratic County Commissioner Adrian Garcia, the former sheriff who represents the area and who met with Salgado Araujo’s family after the shooting, visited the memorial near day’s end to add his sticker.
He noted the spike in early voter turnout, driven in part by an increase in Latino first-time voters and “sporadic” voters likely motivated by the shooting. Texas has been a majority-minority state for years but Latino leaders have struggled to turn out voters locally and statewide.
“This election is about demonstrating that a community can lift its voice up and cause change,” Garcia said. “In this particular area the Hispanic vote has the potential to outpace all other communities for the first time. I think it’s because of Lorenzo.”
A steady stream of voters added their stickers to the memorial Wednesday. Austin Galvan, 27, came at the urging of his uncle, who had already visited days earlier with his great-uncle — three generations of stickers.
Galvan said he’d been encouraged to see his nearby polling place “a lot more packed than it usually is.” He said Salgado Araujo’s shooting “has gotten a lot of people to care who otherwise wouldn’t.”
“It certainly feels like change is in the air.”
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