Justice For Yoel Rodriguez.

Hello my name is Diana Salazar, I’m Colombian born, but I’m an American resident. My husband is Yoel Rodriguez, born in Cuba and an American citizen. This fundraiser was set up in order to help alleviate lawyer, doctors/healthcare costs. It is also so we can pay back the money lent to us to pay bond for my husband and other personal expenses. My husband is the only worker in the family, he is the only one that brings money home. However, he is currently unable to work and provide for us because of the aggression committed against him. He is in extreme pain and that’s why he is currently unable to work. He is an independent worker and for the time being he is not able to return to his work. We are extremely grateful for everything everyone has done for us, since any help from you is extremely helpful for our situation right now.This is the backstory:44 year old Latin American Yoel Rodriguez, his wife and two children were shopping at Jacksonville's, Florida Walmart late Sunday when he was suddenly assaulted and injured by an off-duty Police Officer. According to witnesses reports, Yoel and his family were waiting in line to pay for their groceries, is important to note that this was at 8:30 pm, Walmart's closing time. However, they were not, the only clients left in the store. It is also important to note that neither Yoel nor his wife have a complete grasp of the English language. Therefore, Yoel could not understand why he suddenly was being asked to evacuate the premises. He kept repeating that 'they were going to pay', but the Officer insisted on evacuating him and his family from the store. That is when the Officer pushed the shopping cart into Yoel's young child, making the tense situation tenser. The Officer attempted to physically grab Yoel's arm to evacuate him. Yoel still couldn't understand what was happening and repeatedly said 'Don't touch me, don't touch me' in Spanish. He kept pulling away from the Officer, until you can see that in the video, the Officer decides to punch him in the face. This is clearly use of excessive force by the authority. He did not attempt to de-escalate the situation, find a translator and explain the situation to Yoel. Language barrier is never an excuse or justification for violence against civilians. Florida has a growing population of Spanish speaking individuals, the officer could have decided to look for a Spanish speaking employee, or even client, to help defuse the situation. Instead, he resorted to physical violence to arrest an extremely lost and confused Yoel. It is extremely important to note that Yoel was arrested on battery charges, but he is the only one that left with a broken, bloody nose and two black eyes.The Officer left seemingly uninjured.