{"id":4126,"date":"2020-03-26T17:16:43","date_gmt":"2020-03-26T21:16:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=4126"},"modified":"2020-03-26T17:23:47","modified_gmt":"2020-03-26T21:23:47","slug":"gabriel-fernandez-offers-lessons-for-all","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/students.com.miami.edu\/reviewing\/?page_id=4126","title":{"rendered":"‘Gabriel Fernandez’ offers lessons for all"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Posted March 26, 20<\/em>20<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By ALEXIS WIENER<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Curled up in a cupboard for hours on end with ties around his feet and a gag in his mouth, 8-year-old Gabriel Fernandez was living in a nightmare at the hands of his mother and her boyfriend. Surviving until his body could not take more, he lived in fear and pain for the last eight months of his life. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Netflix documentary, \u201cThe Trials\nof Gabriel Fernandez,\u201d is a heart-breaking six-episode series that should be\nwatched by mature viewers due to the degree of brutally that is shown.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Director Brian Knappenberger takes the viewers through the final eight months of Gabriel\u2019s life with a series of clips from the trials, interviews, pictures and videos. Relaying how he was failed by everyone, including the Los Angeles Department of Child and Family Services. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every year there are over a million\nchild abuse cases reported, but what had happened to Gabriel could be one of\nthe worst. Going into this documentary expecting to see what everyone is used\nto hearing about these cases, it went completely above and beyond anyone\u2019s\nwildest nightmares.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How could so many people have seen\nthis little boy and done nothing? Why didn\u2019t someone just take him away? How\nmany other cases are there like this out there that are not even being helped\nbecause of the lack of care? So many questions run through the minds of viewers\nas they watch this stomach curling series.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Taking place in Los Angeles,\nGabriel Fernandez lived a normal life until moving in with his mother, Pearl\nFernandez, and her boyfriend, Isauro Aguirre. Focusing on the final event that\nultimately ended the young boy\u2019s life, other key components were highlighted\nthroughout the series. The boy was in the face with a BB gun, forced to eat cat\nlitter and experienced regular beatings. But these were just some of many torturous\nevents that Gabriel endured.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mother and boyfriend were two\nkey people in telling this story, but they were not interviewed. We learned\nthat they are disgusting, cruel and downright evil human beings. Viewers learn\nabout the lives of both and are given some insight as to their pasts. This is\ndone tastefully and helps bring the story together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also highlighting the many other key\nplayers, the viewers were shown interviews from the boy\u2019s teacher, grandparents\nand social workers. The story dives into different angles from their\nperspectives and the documentary describes how they ultimately failed Gabriel\nas well. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

First grade teacher Jennifer Garcia\nwas one of the few people who spent the most time with Gabriel. Confiding in\nher, she knew of the abuse that lead her to call the California Department of Child\nand Family Services. Garcia thought calling the services would help Gabriel,\nwhen in fact they did nothing. She continued to see him come to class with\nbruises and burns everywhere. Some days his eyes swollen shut and haircuts that\nleft patches of blood on his scalp. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Interviews with key individuals such as Garcias were done very well, which ultimately contributed to the overall cleanness of the production. Pictures were timed perfectly with the voice-overs and mood music emphasized every feeling a viewer watching it could have. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Some of the pictures of Gabriel\nwere very graphic but necessary to show just how horrible this situation became.  Particular images like the ones of him lying\non the examination table and seeing almost every inch of his body injured were\nvery challenging to view. Although these images were limited in number, they\nwere shown at moments that were absolutely necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This documentary exposed the California\nDepartment of Child and Family Services, showing the countless times that its their\nlack of care, organization, and support hurt Gabriel. This was very educational\nfor viewers who does not realize how the system can fail those within. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Again, the most surprising thing of\nall was the number of people who knew what was going on and did nothing, simply\nstanding by while an 8-year-old was being tortured and abused. That was shown\nthroughout the documentary and was something no viewer will forget. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That little boy in the cupboard\ncould be one of many that go unknown.  A\nneed for change in social services is real and necessary.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

“The Trials of Gabriel Fernandez”<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n