Brooklyn Coke Bottle Campaign Honors Child Who Died In US Custody

WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN — When Mauricio Alarcon heard about 7-year-old Jakelin Caal — the Guatemalan girl who died in U.S. Border Patrol custody — he couldn't help but think of his own family.

"As a parent, the news of Jakelin’s death went straight through my heart," Alarcon, the founder of Greenpoint-based collective Conquistadors. "I came to this country to pursue my own dreams and my daughter, who is half-Ecuadorian will start her life here, with a fresh start and the opportunity to choose whatever path she’d like. That’s the same dream that Jakelin’s father had for his daughter."

Jakelin died in a Texas hospital in December after barely a day in the United States, 11 hours of which were spent in the custody of US Border Patrol, according to Vox.

Alarcon said the news followed an already difficult time of watching the plight of refugees at the border. He knew he had to do something to make sure Jakelin's name and story were not forgotten, so he came up with an idea.

That idea — Coke bottles featuring Jakelin's name — can now be found on the shelves of South Side Grocery Corp, a Williamsburg bodega owned by Faustino Quezado.

Alarcon and various collaborators ordered 40 bottles through the online "Share a Coke" tool to be sold at the bodega. Coke bottles seemed like the perfect "symbol of American consumerism" with a brand message about sharing that seemed relevant to the concept, he added.

Quezada, a Dominican, was immediately on board to be the first in what Alarcon hopes will be a movement in the city and elsewhere. Right now, Coca-Cola isn't involved with the stunt, but he said getting the company officially involved might help expand the idea.

"I don’t want to forget her name and I want to honor the strength and courage of this little girl and her father," Alarcon said. "The aim would be to get Coke on board, get the customized bottles for a lower price and use the life-force of thousands of Latino bodegas in New York, Miami and LA."

Alarcon worked with writer Lauren Alarcon, designer Gabi Guiard and photographers Mariliana Arévalo and Lupe Chang to get the campaign up and running.

The group is raising awareness and money online with a GoFundMe. Two other places, a Brazilian restaurant and a design store in Brooklyn, are also already interested in featuring the bottles.

Alarcon said the message has already resonated with other Latinos.

"I felt it was important to make a statement about what is going on," he said. "The purpose of this guerrilla stunt is to try to help the refugees who are suffering at the border."

Photos by Mariliana Arévalo and Lupe Chang.