In a new ad that debuts Thursday, Leandra Feliz, the mother of 15-year-old Lesandro “Junior” Guzman, endorsed District 14 Councilman Fernando Cabrera for Bronx borough president.
Feliz’s son was murdered by a group of gang members outside a bodega on June 20, 2018, prompting the #JusticeForJunior movement.
The 30-second ad (link below) recounts the tragic event, Cabrera’s support for Feliz and her family in the wake of the killing as well as her support for Cabrera: “We need people like him to make the Bronx a safe place.”
In a statement, Feliz said that rising crime in the Bronx made Cabrera’s candidacy all the more urgent.
“True ‘#JusticeForJunior’ means making sure there are no more mothers like me. Pastor Cabrera has been a servant leader in preventing gang and gun violence because he has treated it like the public health crisis that it is,” she said. “Pastor Cabrera was there for me. I know he’ll be there for all of us in making our communities safer.”
Cabrera welcomed the endorsement. “Leandra Feliz has shown extraordinary courage in speaking out for safer communities, even while carrying the terrible burden of grief. I am humbled by her endorsement and I will honor her sacrifice and Junior’s memory by continuing our fight against gang and gun violence.”
Watch the ad here. (https://vimeo.com/554809064/c754db479d)
