I do not write often about the deaths of youth that are a part of our community, connected to the projects I work with, or the families I know. I do not write often because the newspapers chronicle these deaths with terse simplicity:
- December 20, 2009: An adolescent of 17 years died the night before last in La Carpio, La Uruca, San José, after being hit by three gunshots, reported the Organismo de Investigación Judicial (OIJ). The authorities identified him as Nelson Antonio Granja López, who was found with gunshot wounds in the chest, abdomen, and the right thigh.
- November 8, 2010: A minor was killed by at least two subjects inside a tenement located in the barrio of La Carpio, en La Uruca, San José. The victim was identified as Jaime Sequeira Mendoza, 18 years old. Nationality: Nicaraguan. (www.prensalibre.cr/pl/suceso/34877-asesinan-menor-en-la-carpio.html, retrieved 10/26/2013).
- October 29, 2012: A young 23-year-old male was killed by a bullet as a result of a supposed dispute between gangs in La Carpio de La Uruca, San José. The tragedy occurred yesterday at 0:15 a.m., in the sector known as La Cueva del Sapo. The authorities only identified the victim with last name: Morales. The young man died from a gunshot in the neck, and was found with a knife wound in his left hand.
There are more. I leave the writing up to the papers. I don’t feel adequate to voice the pain of these events in written form, but this is my best attempt.