First Time Marcher Joins Community In Demanding Justice For Vanessa Guillen

She says Vanessa's story inspired her to take to the streets

FARGO-MOORHEAD – “How can this be happening to our soldiers?”

That’s the question Martha Castañon asked herself after learning about Vanessa Guillen’s story and the thousand of others that came soon after on social media.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re white, Black, Brown, Asian, Native American. These are our soldiers that are going into the service and they should be protected,” she said.

Castañon says she feels for Vanessa Guillen’s mother, because she knows the feeling of losing a child all too well.

“I lost my daughter many years ago, so I know that intense pain, and When I saw the mother being interviewed and her raw pain, it just really, really got to me and I thought, we need to do something, I need to start telling this story, sharing it,” she adds.

For her, being part of Saturday’s peaceful march that urged action to be taken, was the best way she thought she would be able to share Vanessa’s story.

She was joined by more than 50 other members of the F-M community who shared the same sentiment.

“Total frustration with how the military handled everything. Their lack of time, their lack of importance for one of their soldiers, for one of their own. And they need to be deeply investigated, not only for Vanessa, but for all the soldiers that are going to come after her, and that are currently there right now,” Jay Lopez, a marcher said.

Castañon says not taking to the streets when there’s a wrongdoing is being complicit.

“To not stand up for something and march for a cause, is like being silent.”