It’s the very fact that freedom is expressed within a politicized structure that freedom is unattainable. Sean San Jose's “Who Shot La Miguelito?” addresses these very questions through the character of Margarita and her expressions of grief following the death of Miguelito. Following Miguelito’s murder, Margarita reacted in such a way that re-centered the root of the problem from Police Brutality, to a feeling of resentment toward La Virgen de Guadalupe. In this particular moment, Margarita expresses a feeling of isolation and loneliness.

Obscured from sight by the liberal nature of the First Amendment is the goal of autonomy from the settler-colonial state. While emphasizing freedom, the United States juxtaposes this notion by establishing a rigid structure under which these freedoms can exist. There’s no question whether the colonial state obscures and benefits from these atrocities, rather, it’s a question of how exactly the state is able to execute these crimes. This can be seen operating in “Who Shot La Miguelito?” as a critique of the zionist occupation of Palestine. A tactic that’s proven effective for settler-colonial states is the re-centering of blame. It’s been able to hide its tracks with the help of having people who look just like you and me do their menial work for them. Therefore, a clear face or pattern is never associated with the violence that is faced by targeted communities. There’s no question as to whether the United States re-centers blame in order to preserve the moral standards which it itself has defined. The American state is able to hold power over us in this regard by weaponizing our likeness. Being inflicted harm upon from someone who you would consider to be your friend has a much larger effect than had it come from someone you wouldn’t identify with.