An 11-year-old girl took her own life in Texas after she was tormented by classmates who threatened to call Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities and have her family deported from the U.S, her grieving parents have said.
Jocelynn Rojo Carranza passed away on February 8 after spending five days being treated in a Dallas hospital. This came after she was taunted with deportation threats for weeks by sixth-grade classmates at Gainesville Intermediate School, around 70 miles north of Dallas, her mother Marbella Carranza told Univision.
Her death comes amid President Donald Trump’s ordering for the “largest deportation operation in American history,” prompting agents with ICE and other federal authorities to launch targeted raids on approximately 12 million undocumented immigrants nationwide.
For Jocelyn however, the climate of fear became all too grave.
Classmates allegedly harassed the young girl by telling her she would be left alone without her family once they were deported.
But the alleged abuse spiraled, and despite reportedly informing school officials on numerous occasions, no action was taken to stop it.
When asked to comment on this story, the Gainesville Independent School District did not acknowledge Carranza’s death but rather issued a statement pointing to its strict anti-bullying code.
Jocelynn Rojo Carranza,11, pictured on a crowdfunding page that was set up by a member of her family (GoFundMe)
Carranza told Univision: “I waited a whole week for a miracle that my daughter would be well, but unfortunately nothing could be done.”
“My daughter will always live for me, and I will always love her.”
Her mother revealed to the outlet her daughter had been seeing a school counselor multiple times per week.
ICE officials have nearly doubled their daily arrest rate as part of the crackdown since Trump’s inauguration and over 10,000 people have already been deported on military flights widely publicized by the White House.
A GoFundMe donation page was created while the 11-year-old was desperately fighting to survive in hospital.
Her father Ernesto Alonso Rojo, shared a statement on February 15: “Please all help me and my daughter Jocelynn Rojo. She needs to come back home; she is in an emergency children’s hospital. Any help, God blesses you back. Thank you very much to all praying. Dios los bendiga y le mande salud a mi niña!!!”
One person wrote an emotive message of condolence, posting in Spanish: “My deepest condolences — there are no words. Fight for justice for your beloved Jocelynn, and hopefully one day you will feel peace knowing that she is no longer suffering and that so many have her in their thoughts and prayers.”
If you are based in the USA, and you or someone you know needs mental health assistance right now, call or text 988 or visit 988lifeline.org to access online chat from the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline. This is a free, confidential crisis hotline that is available to everyone 24 hours a day, seven days a week. If you are in another country, you can go to www.befrienders.org to find a helpline near you. In the UK, people having mental health crises can contact the Samaritans at 116 123 or jo@samaritans.org
