Though it’s been two months since the Los Angeles Times released a video documenting Gaspar Marcos’ life as an unaccompanied immigrant youth in California, the teen’s story has continued to impact others, including actor Arturo Castro.
Best known as Jaime on Comedy Central’s “Broad City,” Castro shared on Instagram Monday that he was inspired to reach out to the teen.
“This is Gaspar,” he wrote in the caption of a photo of himself with Marcos. “He’s a migrant kid from Guatemala who hauls ass from working 12 hour shifts as a busboy to school, while taking naps on the bus. I first heard about him through the LA times (article in my bio), and was so inspired by his tenacity that I went to hang [with] him when I was in LA, and now we’re getting him private tutoring for English.”
The Guatemalan-born actor went on to praise the young man’s unbreakable spirit in a “time of hateful rhetoric.” He also thanked Casa Libre for providing young people like Marcos “with the tools they need, and the respect they deserve.”
Marcos, who spoke in Spanish throughout the mini doc, grew up in an indigenous village in Huehuetenango, Guatemala, where most residents speak Chuj, according to The LA Times. He shined shoes as a preteen to make a living and earn enough money to put himself through a local private school in his village, where he learned to read and write in Spanish. At age 13, Marcos immigrated to the U.S. from Guatemala, alone.
In July, Marcos became the subject of a viral video which gave viewers a glimpse into a day in the life of an unaccompanied youth. Within days of the video’s release, a GoFundMe page was set up for Marcos by Federico Bustamante, who has worked with the high schooler for approximately three years. As of Sept. 21, the campaign has raised more than $42,000 and, according his GoFundMe page, half of the money raised will go toward helping some of Marcos’ classmates at Belmont High School and Casa Libre.
H/T Remezcla
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