Killed by Cops, a Young Graffiti Artist Is Memorialized by a Children's Book

Isra & Lito, a children’s book by Miami-based journalist and filmmaker Stan Jakubowicz, begins at night. Illustrated by Jefferson Quintana, a black-and-grey sky spreads across the first page, dotted with tiny constellations and spinning spirals. It’s still and quiet, comforting. “Many children are afraid of the night because they think that when it is all dark, monsters and ghosts appear,” reads the accompanying text. “But that is not true. The night is the night and nothing else. The night is just the other side of the day.”

The book is based on the life of Israel Hernandez-Llach, the 18-year-old artist chased down and tased in the chest by Miami Beach police officers, resulting in his death by sudden cardiac arrest. His crime: nearly tagging REEFA along the walls of a deserted McDonald’s. Seven months later, authorities revealed it was, indeed, the taser that ended his life—it wasn't, as police had proclaimed, due to drugs. As of July 2015, after two years of the Hernandez-Llach family's endless rallying for justice—Justice for Reefa even dovetailed with the Dream Defenders—prosecutors announced they would not charge the police officer responsible. Tasers, say the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s office, “are not likely” to cause cardiac death. It’s since been ruled an accident.

Courtesy of Stan Jakubowicz and Jefferson Quintana

Isra & Lito tells a very different story—one with a happy ending, an homage to Hernandez’s creative brilliance. Upon hearing about Hernandez, Jakubowicz was heartbroken. “I produced a documentary called Tasered: The Israel Hernandez Story for Fusion,” he says. “[His story] touched me as an immigrant, as an artist, as a son, as a father.” He kept thinking about Hernandez-Llach, long after his documentary premiered. Isra & Lito begins as a tale of two boys: Isra, who loves to paint at night, and Lito, who likes to skateboard during the day. After they make a pact to “paint the most amazing grafitti on the saddest, most melancholic wall of town” to beautify the neighborhood and make people smile, the duo are swept up by police.

We then learn that Isra & Lito are one multifaceted boy named Israelito, much like the real Hernandez, a wildly talented artist whose work was colorful and dynamic, equally subtle and microcosmic. Israelito is sent home unharmed, able to continue sharing his work with the world.

Hernandez-Llach’s older sister, Offir, was especially moved by the book. “Seeing him as a character inspires me and makes me feel so good about being his sister,” she says. Intended for the very young, Isra & Lito has—like all good children’s books—a special appeal for adults, especially given its moral, which is to live boldly. The illustrations are abstract, almost design-oriented, but still accessible for children. “I decided that the character should stay away from a realistic representation,” says Quintana. “I wanted it to be more abstract, so that each reader could create their own unique identity.”

Image from Isra & Lito, courtesy of Stan Jakubowicz and Jefferson Quintana

Though the police in Isra & Lito are far more even-keeled than the real-life cops of recent media attention, the story is still important at a time when police brutality is highly publicized and visibly racist. Explains Jakubowicz, “When I first started writing this book, I felt that my mission was to deconstruct [real life events] for children so they can understand the world better. They know what’s going on, they feel that something is extremely wrong… but they don’t have enough context to understand it. And parents don’t have the time or the tools to dissect such events. What I want with this book is to generate that conversation at home.”

While Hernandez-Llach’s situation fits into a larger sociopolitical narrative, his story, like all other tragedies, is unique, and Isra & Lito does a good job of addressing Hernandez’s humanity and the legacy he left behind. In one scene, Isra paints “a very sad wall”: “And then he painted a garden. And it was hard to see where the graffiti ended and the real grass started.” Says Offir, “I promised myself, if I have children, I will make sure they know about him through stories I tell at night. He will be the hero of a story, alive for future generations.” For her and so many others, REEFA continues to foster inspiration. “Although my entire life was broken into so many pieces, I found a way to make it inspire me. He was passionate. I thought, it’s better for me to live as much as he lived. He is a complete inspiration to my life.”

Isra & Lito will be released on August 28, with an accompanying book launch and reading at Books & Books in Wynwood, 2602 NW 5th Avenue.

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