Folk music fans, especially those who know of Woody Guthrie, are usually familiar with the song "Deportees". Pete Seeger sung it. Judy Collins, Joan Baez, Bob Dylan, and the Highwaymen are on the short list of many artists who have sung it. The song details the true story of 28 Mexican Nationals, chronicled by local media as "deportees", who perished in a fiery crash in Los Gatos Canyon, just outside the community of Coalinga, California. The names of the pilot, co-pilot, stewardess, and air marshall were recorded, but the 28 passengers were buried in a mass grave with a simple marker:
But the story goes further. In 2011, while doing research for a book, Fresno author Tim Z. Hernandez came across the story and wondered if the names had ever been found. Through painstaking research, over the next 2 years. he set about finding the names, and on Labor Day 2013, a new monument was erected at Holy Cross Cemetery in Fresno, California, giving the names of all who perished in the blaze:
Hernandez tells the story beautifully in his book, a labor of love that took him deep into Mexico to meet the families of many who perished. He tells of their loves lost, their dreams, their visions, and the circumstances that brought them to that fateful day. If you ever have a chance to hear him speak, or find the book at your local bookstore, get it. It is an amazing tale, and one you will not regret reading.
