Migra Matters: minutemen

This weeks Web Site Pick is "Minutemen Unvarnished" a site sponsored by the California Rural Legal Assistance Foundation’s Border Project, which monitors day labor sites in San Diego County.

Minutemen Unvarnished tracks the activities of the San Diego Minutemen as they harass and threaten day laborers, employers, and Latinos in general, at various locations throughout the region. They video the minutemen in action and present them uncensored in all their racist glory.

The San Diego Minutemen (SDMM) and related groups are targeting day laborer hiring sites--and the laborers themselves--throughout San Diego County, chasing away potential employers in what they claim is simply a campaign to secure our borders.

SDMM's public line is that they stage protests at the sites to discourage the hiring of "illegal slave labor." However, among themselves, they make it clear that their target is Latino day laborers, period... legal or illegal.

In the videos presented here, SDMM members and supporters speak and act for themselves. You be the judge.

Minutemen Unvarnished

Here's a sample of what the folks from "Minutemen Unvarnished" deal with daily:

Video Link

For more see: Minutemen Unvarnished

Also check out their sister site; Minutemen Uncensored where they post up uncensored e-mails from Minutemen listserves that give an inside view of what the San Diego Minutemen say to each other when there are no cameras or observers around.

Minutemen Unvarnished shows the true face of Lou Dobbs "patriot" friends

Today, two important events demonstrated just how far to the right the Republican Presidential candidates are shifting on the immigration issue. The first was the endorsement of Iowa front runner, Mike Huckabee, by Minutemen founder, Jim Gilchrist –not so much for the fact that Gilchrist is once again trying to thrust his agenda center stage – but rather Huckabee's willingness to embrace it.

On stage at an event in Council Bluffs with Gilchrist ,Huckabee characterized the anti- immigrant vigilante as "a person who just got fed up with what he saw as a breakdown of his own government.…Since October of 2004 he's been one of the leading voices in this country trying to bring sanity to an issue that's spiraled.." adding:

"Frankly, Jim I've got to tell you there were times in the early days of the Minutemen I thought what are these guys doing, what are they about," Huckabee said. "I confess I owe you an apology." He said of Gilchrist, "nobody can question his commitment to his country."

Washington Post

The second event was an announcement by the leading civil rights watchdog group, The Southern Poverty Law Center, that the parent organization of the Washington think tank that's been credited with formulating Huckabee's new tough nine-point plan on immigration has been officially placed on their list of Hate Groups operating in the US.

In a statement issued today, the SPLC asserted that due to its ties to know white supremacists and promotion of racist ideas, the nation's leading anti-immigrant organization, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), would be placed on the Hate Group list. It joins other radical groups like the Neo-Nazi, National Alliance, and the KKK, who also share the same classification.

The country's leading anti-immigration organization — whose leaders have testified repeatedly before Congress and are frequently quoted in the media — has ties to known racists and a long track record of bigotry, according to a new report released today by the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC).

The group, the Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR):

is the creation of a man who operates a racist publishing company and has compared immigrants to "bacteria;"

has employed members of white supremacist groups in key positions;

has promoted racist conspiracy theories; and

has accepted more than $1 million from the Pioneer Fund, a racist foundation devoted to eugenics and to proving a connection between race and IQ.

The SPLC today added FAIR to its list of hate groups operating in the United States.

"FAIR's position on immigration is rooted more in its anti-Latino and anti-Catholic beliefs than in policy concerns," said Mark Potok, the director of the SPLC's project that monitors hate group activity. "Remarkably, it has still managed to infiltrate the mainstream and shape the immigration debate in this country."

FAIR helped defeat federal immigration reform earlier this year and has played a key role in fueling the fierce, anti-immigrant backlash in the United States. It was founded in 1979 by John Tanton, a man who has compared immigrants to bacteria and warned that high birthrates will allow Latinos to take over America. Still a member of FAIR's board, Tanton also operates The Social Contract Press, listed as a hate group for many years by the SPLC because of its anti-Latino and white supremacist writings.
SPLC

FAIR's ties to Huckabee come through its public policy wing; The Center for Immigration Studies, which the former Arkansas Governor has widely credited for the formulation of his new "get tough" immigration policy. In fact he pretty much just lifted the whole thing from a proposal by CIS executive director Mark Krikorian.

The nine-point immigration plan released Friday by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee came with a footnote:

"Note: This plan is partially modeled on a proposal by Mark Krikorian, Executive Director of the Center for Immigration Studies." That proposal by the conservative anti-illegal immigration activist was published in the National Review in May 2005.

Not only is Huckabee's plan strikingly similar to the magazine piece – in some cases, it contains exact quotations copied over from the article

CNN

Its been well documented that FAIR, CIS and a network of other leading anti-immigrant groups are all in fact not only connected, but were all founded and under the leadership of one man; John Tanton, who for over 25 years has been the driving force behind the ant-immigrant movement. The groups share funding, leadership, and in some cases offices.

in 1985, FAIR would spin off yet another major Tanton organization — the Center for Immigration Studies, which presented itself as an impartial think tank and later even sought to distance itself from the organization that had birthed it.

Today, the Center regularly dispatches experts to testify on Capitol Hill, and last year it was awarded a six-figure research contract by the U.S. Census Bureau.

SPLC

SPLC on Federation for American Immigration Reform

The fact that Huckabee has chosen to align himself with CIS, Krikorian, and FAIR is not surprising. FAIR, through its networks of organizations, has become a leading political force in anti-immigrant politics. During the last debate over immigration reform legislation, FAIR affiliate, Numbers USA, was credited with a campaign that generated over a million faxes in opposition to the bill. Obviously with the adoption of Kirkorian's immigration policies Huckabee is hoping to put the full weight of the Tanton network behind his campaign.

This "new" Mike Huckabee is a far cry from the preacher turned politician who a few years ago called anti-immigrant legislation "Un-Christian"

Gov. Mike Huckabee Thursday denounced a bill by Sen. Jim Holt that would deny state benefits to illegal immigrants as un-Christian, un-American, irresponsible and anti-life.

… Even if benefits to people who are in the U.S illegally could be stopped, "I don't understand how a practicing Christian can turn his back on a child from this or any other state," Huckabee said.

… The bill is modeled after a similar law in Arizona and supported by the newly formed group Protect Arkansas NOW. The group's chairman is Joe McCutchen

… Huckabee said he took exception to characterization of immigrants in the bill and by its supporters as exploiters of social programs. "They pay sales taxes on their groceries," Huckabee said. "They pay fuel taxes. If they're using a fake Social Security number, they're paying Social Security taxes and will never receive any benefit. It would be closer to the truth to say they're subsidizing Joe McCutchen and Jim Holt more than the other way around.

Arkansas News Bureau, 1/28/05

But then again, the old Mike Huckabee could never have gotten through the Republican primary process …not in the current toxic climate where hate groups, racist vigilantes, and politicians willingly join forces to pander and promote hatred and fear.

The heated rhetoric coming from the "anti-illegal-immigration" camp over the last two years has had numerous effects on political discourse. While managing to turn the debate over meaningful immigration reform toxic, leaving many politicians unwilling to do the hard work of crafting much needed legislation, it has had the unwanted added effect of empowering some who advocate truly hateful and dangerous agendas to act out their violent and extremist ideas.

Reports from the Anti Defamation League and the Southern Poverty law Center have documented the growing intrusion of hate groups like the KKK and neo-Nazis into the "anti-illegal-immigration movement".

But perhaps even more dangerous has been the a growing proliferation of violent "homegrown" organizations and possible "lone wolf" fanatics willing to take their twisted agendas to the extreme.

In the past weeks there has been growing evidence that there is a catastrophe just waiting to happen, as domestic terrorist plots were uncovered to attack immigrants on a scale much larger than had yet been seen.

In late April, government agents infiltrated a "militia" in Alabama with plans to use machine guns and grenades against local Mexican immigrants. The group was armed and ready to proceed and were already scouting locations for their attack, when agents closed in, leading to the arrest of five members.

In Washington DC a local minuteman was found with a stash of semi automatic weapons and explosives in his home after being arrested after a scuffle at the May 1st immigration rally in that city.

Both these incidents point to the growing violent radicalization of the most extreme elements within the "anti-illegal-immigration" movement.

Fueled by the daily tirades of O'Reilly, Dobbs, Buchanan, or Limbaugh, and the caustic political rhetoric of Tom Tancredo and scores of other "border enforcement" politicians, radical fringe elements, those who would normally be relegated to the periphery, are further emboldened and urged to action in their belief that they represent the "mainstream" of American thought.

Political discourse and debate need never be passionless, but the level of vitriol accepted as constructive debate has increasingly grown to a level that now seems to border on the dangerous. With talk of "invading hordes" of "disease ridden aliens" pouring over the border daily, the line between responsible political debate, and eliminationist rhetoric has become blurred ... especially for those predisposed to violent racists acts.

In the case of Tyler Joseph Froatz, the man arrested in Washington DC, he was not only a member of the local Herndon Minutemen, but also the conservative Internet based discussion forum Free Republic where he was regular poster and attended rallies and other events sponsored by the group. This acceptance of Froatz's anti-immigrant views by the Free Republic crowd could only lend credence to his belief that he was in the mainstream of conservative thought.

Even when he was clearly part of a violent radical fringe as demonstrated by his actions.

A self-proclaimed Herndon Minuteman whom police arrested in a tussle at an immigration rally Tuesday now faces weapons charges after federal authorities found a cache of guns and explosives at his Northwest Washington home.

Law enforcement officials searched the apartment of 24-year-old Tyler Joseph Froatz after U.S. Park Police found several weapons on him Tuesday outside the demonstration at Meridian Hill Park, including an M-1 rifle and a map of an embassy in his Jeep.

The Examiner"Anti-immigration activist arrested at demonstration faces weapons charges", May 4

Police say that on Tuesday, Froatz, was counter protesting at an immigration rally in Meridian Hill Park when he became embroiled in a fight with immigration rally organizer. According to police, Froatz bent the organizer's left arm and scratched her hand, before leaving the area to don dark camouflage clothing. Police arrived and arrested Froatz and found a host of weapons on him including a hammer, taser, and a loaded flare gun. In addition, Detective Robert Freeman of the U.S. Park Police testified that Froatz was carrying two knives including a "12 inch dagger-style knife."

A search of Froatz's nearby Jeep recovered a loaded M-1 rifle and ammunition. A map of a local embassy and a detailed, hand-drawn sketch of the park with lines pointing towards the center of the protest was found in the front seat of the Jeep, Freeman said.

But those items were overshadowed by what investigators discovered in Froatz's apartment in the 5300 block of 8 th St. NW. Freeman described a home bristling with a variety of bladed weapons, 13 guns and more than 2,000 rounds of ammunition. Froatz did not have a permit for the guns which include a fully-loaded 12-gauge shotgun and a .45-caliber pistol.

Police also discovered an explosive resembling a Molotov cocktail. The cocktail was found in a Welch's grape juice bottle wrapped in a t-shirt and appeared to be a mix of gasoline with a jelly-like substance which if it exploded would stick to a person "like napalm," Freeman explained.

The Examiner, "Judge refuses bail to armed protester",May 4

click to watch video

Kristinn Taylor, credited in press accounts as a "friend of Floatz" or "member of a local anti-immigration organization", is in fact the co-leader of the DC chapter of the hard right Free Republic and knows Froatz well, although he now claims he was unaware of Froatz's violent leanings.

Kristinn Taylor, a friend of Froatz who attended the hearing, expressed shock that the "nonthreatening," and chatty 24-year-old could hurt anyone.

"Like a lot of people who feel strongly about the immigration issue, he was out protesting," Taylor said, who added Froatz was not working for Free Republic during his protest.

"He didn't say anything about killing illegals or nothing like that."

link

Froatz was refused bail by D.C. Superior Court Judge, John Hess, who expressed concern that he posed a threat to the area. Considering the severity of the charges, it seems likely that Froatz will go to prison if convicted. His next court appearance is May 17.

While Froatz can be viewed as a mentally disturbed "lone wolf," drawn to violence with the tacit support of the media and politicians all too willing to play into his psychosis with talk of "illegal-aliens invasions," and "disease ridden aliens" mooching off the American people, taking their jobs, and lowering standards for all …. The same cannot be said for the "Alabama Free Militia." Although inspired to action by the same kind of rhetoric that inflamed Floatz, the group of five domestic terrorists have much more in common with Timothy McVie, and his brand of organized terrorism, than the "lone lunatic" model applied to Floatz.

Five members of a self-styled militia were denied bail Tuesday after a federal agent testified they planned a machine gun attack on Mexicans, but a judge approved bail for a sixth man.

…snip…

Adam Nesmith, an agent with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, testified that the five - Raymond Kirk Dillard, 46; Adam Lynn Cunningham, 41; Bonnell Hughes, 57; Randall Garrett Cole, 22; and James Ray McElroy, 20 - planned a machine-gun attack on Mexicans in Remlap, a town just north of Birmingham, and went there on a reconnaissance mission April 20. The agent provided no further details.

During the raids last week, agents recovered 130 homemade hand grenades, a grenade launcher, about 70 hand grenades rigged to be fired from a rifle, a machine gun, a short-barrel shotgun and 2,500 rounds of ammunition, authorities said.

Local and federal officials returned to the area Tuesday because authorities got information that explosives could be hidden in a cave, said Stanna Guice, spokeswoman for the DeKalb County Sheriff's Department. Officers on foot and horseback converged in a field and worked outward to search for a cache.

Arizona Republic, " 5 accused in Alabama militia case planned attack on Mexicans", May 1, 2007

The heavily armed Alabama Free Militia planned to attack a group of Hispanics in Blount County and had orders to open fire immediately if they saw the feds coming, an ATF agent said Tuesday.

Adam Nesmith of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives testified during a federal court hearing that the men had a plan to attack a group of Mexicans in the Remlap area with machine guns.

Nesmith said two of the men and a confidential informant went on a reconnaissance mission to Remlap on April 20, six days before federal, state and local law enforcement officers carried out last Thursday's raids in four Alabama counties, confiscating truckloads of explosives, 130 grenades and 2,500 rounds of ammunition.

Nesmith said Raymond Dillard, described as the militia major, and James Ray McElroy, a private, were the two who traveled to Remlap.

Nesmith said Dillard, who had the highest rank, told the informant there were standing orders that if the militia saw the feds coming they were to open fire immediately because "they are the enemy."

…snip…

The ATF and the Alabama State Fire Marshal's Office initiated an investigation into the group about seven weeks ago. They used the confidential informant to infiltrate the militia and document grenade-making with video and audio recordings. The informant had met Dillard at a DeKalb County flea market in the fall.

Birmigham News, "Agent says militia targeted Hispanics", May 2, 2007

Clearly both these instances demonstrate that both luck and excellent police work helped to thwart what would have been catastrophes of a grand scale.

Yet we hear little in the media of this growing trend. It is always after a Columbine, Virginia Tech or Oklahoma City that we analyze and look for causes and possible prevention for such disasters.

But this time, one of the factors leading to this increase in violence is evident and could easily be addressed… the growing vitriol and hyperbolic rhetoric coming from the anti-illegal-immigration camp. One need only go to the forums and chat boards of such groups as the Minuteman or Save Our State to see the proliferation of "invasion" rhetoric where undocumented immigrants are compared to animals and vermin to see the handwriting on the wall. It is only a matter of time until something horrendous happens.

And only then will we finally have our "national dialogue" about this issue.

Then we will look at the effect this kind of socially acceptable hate speech, spewed out daily by media talking-heads, right-wing radio and politicians, has had in bringing on the kind of catastrophe that can no longer be swept under the carpet by a complacent and enabling media.

But at the cost of how many innocents lives?

tags: immigration, racism , hate crime, hate speech, Alabama Militia, Tyler Froatz

This week brings us a story about those who take advantage of the desperation of undocumented immigrants hoping to normalize their status with fraudulent schemes and rip-offs. Minutemen leaders continue to fight over control of the vigilante group and financial impropriety, while the Klan tries to further inject itself into the immigration debate. Some editorials examine the failures of immigration policy, as raids and deportations continue. Lastly we look at some immigration semantics in Washington State where ICE assures residents that there are no raids as they arrest, detain and deport undocumented immigrants.

Immigration Fraud Scheme Uncovered

Minuteman Infighting Continues

KKK Weighs in on Hazleton Case

Editorials Look At Failed Immigration Policies

750 Set for Deportation after Week-Long Southern California Raids

When is a Raid-Not a Raid? 30 Arrested in Washington State.

Immigration Fraud Scheme Uncovered

Woman pleads guilty to million-dollar fraud of immigration applications

Maria Maximo, 56, pleaded guilty today in Manhattan federal court to charges relating to two schemes to defraud immigrants by charging them between $500 and $2,500 to file immigration applications that Maximo knew were baseless and would ultimately be denied. According to the felony Information to which Maximo pleaded guilty, and other documents publicly filed in this case:

Between June 2004 and early 2005, Maximo, on behalf of approximately 500 illegal immigrants, prepared applications to a purported "work permit program" through which, Maximo claimed, the immigrants would receive valid United States work permits. Maximo charged $500 for the preparation of each of these approximately 500 applications. United States Citizenship and Information Services (USCIS) had no such "work permit program" and offers employment identification cards only to immigrants who have visas allowing them to work in the United States, or who are applying for immigration status which, if granted, would allow them to work. As a result, USCIS denied the approximately 500 invalid applications.

In another facet of the scheme, between May 2005 and January 2006, Maximo charged approximately 1,700 people between $500 and $2,500 for the preparation of applications to what she promoted as a "legalization program" open to virtually any illegal immigrant. Maximo claimed that through the "legalization program" applicants could receive work permits and ultimately green cards.
ICE.gov

Minuteman Infighting Continues

Judge hears arguments in Minuteman Project leadership struggle March 22, 2007

An Orange County Superior Court judge is urging those involved in a power struggle at the Minuteman Project, an anti-illegal immigration group, to work out their differences.

Project co-founder Jim Gilchrist has sued the group's board of directors for control of the organization after he was fired and accused of embezzling $400,000 in donations. He has denied the allegations.

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In a court hearing Wednesday, Judge Randell L. Wilkinson suggested that Gilchrist work out the disagreements with board members through mutually trusted intermediaries.

But Gilchrist called the differences “irreconcilable,” and said he could not be an ally of people who have filed complaints against him with the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service.
Sna Diego Union Tribune

Gilchrist denied control March 23, 2007

A Superior Court judge on Thursday rejected Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist's request to be immediately returned sole control of the anti-illegal immigration group – a ruling that leaves the organization immobilized.

Judge Randell Wilkinson also placed restrictions on the three directors tussling with Gilchrist, noting in his order that there were "serious issues concerning the credibility of the claims of both Jim Gilchrist and the defendants…"

Gilchrist was ousted from the group in January by the vote of the three directors, who said they were concerned with sloppy accounting and possible fundraising improprieties. The three then took control of the organization's primary bank account and, at least temporarily, the group's main Web site.
OC Register

Related:
Lawsuit ties up Minuteman donations, Arizona Star, 3-23-07
Both sides claim a win in Minuteman suit, LA Times, 3-24-07
Judge hears arguments in Minuteman case, LA Times, 3-22-07

KKK Weighs in on Hazleton Case

Klan wants to rally in Hazleton; city says no way

A New Jersey-based Ku Klux Klan group vowed Wednesday to hold a rally in Hazleton if the city loses its battle over the illegal-immigration ordinance in federal court.

By Thursday, they pushed up the date to this weekend.

The Confederate Knights, Knights of the Ku Klux Klan held an “emergency meeting” after city officials in Hazleton rejected the group’s support Wednesday and said they would try to stop the rally, the KKK chapter’s leader said Thursday night.

“People, especially public officials, have to think about things they say before they say them,” said Joseph V. Bednarsky Jr., the KKK chapter’s imperial wizard. “Irritating us isn’t going to do them any good.”

The KKK group sent a letter Wednesday to Mayor Lou Barletta saying it supports the city’s efforts to fight illegal immigration “100 percent.” Mr. Barletta promptly rejected the KKK’s support and said he would do anything he could to stop the group from rallying in his city.

“We don’t need that in Hazleton,” Mr. Barletta said of the KKK chapter’s proposed appearance.

…snip…

Besides handing out literature during the Hazleton visit, the group plans to look around the area and possibly purchase some property, Mr. Bednarsky said. His group — which has a “state office” in Bloomsburg — has received more than 50 messages about its proposed trip to Hazleton and “95 percent” are people who support the KKK, he said.

“People are just getting tired of the bull crap,” Mr. Bednarsky said. “I would like to see the rise of the Klan like it was in the 1920s.”

The controversy surrounding illegal immigration has allowed the KKK nationally to grow its ranks, according to a 2007 report from the Anti-Defamation League. Pennsylvania is one of 19 states that have active or growing KKK chapters, according to the report.
Times-Tribune

Related:
KKK threaten to protest in Hazleton, Times Leader, 3-24-07
‘Minuteman’ travels 200 miles to back Barletta,Times Leader, 3-23-07
KKK chapter expected to make private appearances in area, The Citizens Voice, 3-24-07
Hazleton mayor rebuffs offer of help from Ku Klux Klan, Times Leader, 3-23-07

Editorials Look At Failed Immigration Policies

Senseless Deportations

Every year, thousands of longtime, legal permanent residents are deported from the United States on the basis of criminal convictions without any opportunity to present evidence of their family ties, employment history or rehabilitation. Many are barred for life from returning to America.

Next Sunday will mark 10 years since the Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act went into effect. This broad legislation, together with the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act, took away the power of immigration judges to exercise discretion in most types of deportation proceedings. Congress dramatically expanded the list of offenses resulting in mandatory deportation so that it now includes many crimes that are considered misdemeanors under state law and that result in no jail time. Individuals can be deported for shoplifting, jumping subway turnstiles, drunken driving and petty drug crimes. Some of those who have been subject to mandatory deportation came to the United States as infants and have never known life elsewhere.

Some arrived as refugees fleeing persecution or as children adopted by American couples. One man, a former child refugee from the genocidal regime of the Khmer Rouge, was deported back to Cambodia for urinating in public; while working as a construction manager, he had relieved himself at a job site.
Wahington Post

Clearing the air: Misconceptions skew immigration debate

When immigration officials crashed through the doors of a New Bedford, Mass., furniture factory, they were hoping to show the Bush administration's determination to enforce immigration laws. With at least a half of a dozen children left without parents, what the administration got instead was a humanitarian crisis.

One might be tempted to congratulate the federal government for doing something about illegal immigration, but let us be the first to dissuade you from any premature shows of support. This raid, like so many others, is a waste of time, rooted as it is in a host of popular but ultimately wrong-headed misconceptions.
Arizona Daily Wildcat

750 Set for Deportation after Week-Long Southern California Raids

More than 750 foreign nationals have been removed from the United States or are facing deportation following a massive week-long enforcement action by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) targeting criminal aliens and immigration fugitives in five Southland counties that concluded earlier today.

During the operation, ICE officers tracked down and arrested 338 immigration violators who were at large in Los Angeles (169), Orange (111), Riverside (26), San Bernardino (22), and Ventura (10) counties. More than 150 of those arrested were immigration fugitives, aliens who have ignored final orders of deportation issued by immigration judges. Another 24 of those encountered were aliens who had been previously deported and returned to the United States illegally.

…snip…

The majority of the aliens taken into custody during the last week are Mexican nationals, but the group also included immigration violators from 14 countries, including the Ukraine, India, Japan, Poland, and Trinidad. Since many of these individuals have already been through immigration proceedings, they are subject to immediate removal from the country. Of the 757 aliens arrested during the past week, more than 450 have already been returned to their native countries. The remaining aliens are in ICE custody awaiting a hearing before an immigration judge.
ICE.gov

When is a Raid-Not a Raid? 30 Arrested in Washington State.

30 arrests, but no immigration raids

With rumors of immigration raids sending ripples of fear throughout the Yakima Valley this week, immigration officers announced late Friday afternoon they have arrested 30 people since Wednesday.

U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials said the suspects were detained as part of a three-day initiative to gather "immigration fugitives" in Yakima and Benton counties.

Seattle-based ICE spokeswoman Lorie Dankers said "Operation Return to Sender" captured 16 people from Yakima County and 14 from Benton. Of the 30 undocumented people (from Mexico, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and South Korea) she said 14 were fugitives -- those who'd been ordered by an immigration judge to leave the country but had failed to comply with the court's order. The other 16 people -- all suspected of immigration violations -- were arrested after immigration officials came upon them while searching for a list of fugitives

Twenty-eight of the detainees were sent to a federal detention center in Tacoma, while two women were released to their families. One was the primary caregiver for her children, the other was caring for an ailing spouse. Both still face legal hearings.

…snip…

Although officials arrested some at their homes or known hangouts, Dankers said there were no raids, despite rumors to the contrary.

"We're not there to disrupt and spook people," she said. "I don't want there to be fear in a community."

To ease public fears, Dankers said, she spoke to reporters with Granger's Radio KDNA, a Spanish-language station, to let listeners know there weren't any roundups.
Yakima Herald Republic

Last summer news of missing funds initiated a near meltdown within the ranks of the Minutemen. When financial statements showed that much of the $1.6 mil dollars raised to build barricades along the border was unaccounted for, Minuteman Civil Defense Corp founder, Chris Simcox, faced numerous defections and challenges to power from disgruntled fellow vigilantes.

Now his former partner, and Minuteman Project co-founder, Jim Gilchrist, has been ousted from the leadership of his group amongst allegations of the misappropriation of $400,000 in donations intended to fund border patrol activities.

Although Gilchrist denied the allegations, saying the controversy "could very well bring an end to the entire Minuteman Project", the case has now moved to a California courtroom where a judge will be making a decision that could very well determine if Gilchrist will remain the public face of the vigilante movement.

A behind-the-scenes power struggle over control of the Minuteman Project spilled into an Orange County courtroom Monday with ousted co-founder Jim Gilchrist asking a judge to give him back control of the citizen border patrol group.

Superior Court Judge Randell L. Wilkinson said he would issue a ruling within a few days.

Gilchrist, 58, a national figure in the fight against illegal immigration, was removed as president of the Minuteman Project this month by its board of directors, which accused him of abusing his power and leaving more than $400,000 of the organization's money unaccounted for.

Gilchrist, a retired accountant from Aliso Viejo, denied the allegations but said the controversy "could very well bring an end to the entire Minuteman Project. There are groups around the country with the name, but we are the most well known and the most powerful."

Gilchrist said in an interview that his opponents were motivated by "a greed for power and a false perception of an endless stream of money."

Gilchrist said all money raised by his organization was accounted for and that his critics had leveled false allegations to gain control of the organization.

LA Times Feb. 27,2007

Yet, Gilchrist's opponents see things a little differently.

Deborah Courtney, the group's recently appointed treasurer, said in an interview that a direct mail company helped raise $750,000 for the group in 2006, but that she believes the Minuteman campaign received only $311,000. Courtney said she and others had been unable to trace the rest of the money.

…opponents also allege in interviews that he used Minuteman funds to promote the book he co-wrote — "Minutemen: The Battle to Secure America's Borders" — but kept the royalties.

LA Times Feb. 27,2007

Additionally, a complaint against Gilchrist was recently filed with the Internal Revenue Service by opponents who alleged that he never obtain nonprofit status for the group and that he used another organization's nonprofit status to receive discounted nonprofit postal rates.

Infighting, power struggles and questions of financial misconduct are nothing new in the world of the Minutemen. The Minuteman Project has been plagued by controversy from the start. The question is; will Gilchrist survive this newest round of rebellion from within?

The Minuteman Project has never been too particular about who they associate with and has a long history of association with far-right fringe elements like the neo-Nazi National Alliance, Joe Turner's Save Our State, and Barbara Coe of the CCIR (California Coalition for Immigration Reform.)

Since the split between Minuteman Project co-founders Simcox and Gilchrist that left Gilchrist at the helm of the original organization with Simcox running the rival Minuteman Civil Defense Corp, Gilchrist has been forced to compete with a growing number of new vigilante groups for members, funding, media attention and allies. Currently there are about 200 loosely affiliated Minuteman groups operating across the country – with new ones starting all the time. This added competition has left Gilchrist vulnerable to attacks from both the fringe right and those wishing to move the group into the mainstream.

Opponents state that Gilchrist has outgrown his usefulness to the "movement" and it's time for its chief spokesman to take a powder.

Robert Vasquez, a former county commissioner in Idaho who sued companies that hired illegal workers, said top conservative Minuteman leaders turned against Gilchrist, including Barbara Coe. She heads the California Coalition for Immigration Reform and co-wrote Proposition 187, the ballot measure that sought to deny undocumented immigrants certain public benefits.

"Sometimes a position becomes bigger than the man," Vasquez said. "It's unfortunate that it has reached this point." (1)

"It is absolutely traumatic," said Coe, of Huntington Beach. "I had total loyalty to him, and I reassured Jim many times. I pleaded with him, I begged him to [work] with us who were trying to resolve the problems with the Minuteman Project."(2)

(1)LA Times

(2) LA Times Feb. 27,2007

Marvin Stewart, who to replace Gilchrist in February after a vote by board members, said Gilchrist's charisma "is what got me on the team. It attracted people across the nation to come aboard…. But when we talk about the rule of law as an organization fighting illegal immigration, we too as an organization must be in compliance with the rule of law, when we allow these things to occur with any organization, we send a message to the public."

As a centralized Minuteman movement slowly unravels, to be replaced by a loose-knit amalgam of vigilantes and cazamigrantes (immigrant hunters) around the country, it is inevitable that we will see an increase of violence and racially motivated attacks.

In the fall of 2005, when there were only approximately 40 spin-off groups (as opposed to today's 200), the Southern Poverty Law Center chronicled the growing violence in these spin-off groups.

Trigger happy," Goliad County, Texas, Sheriff Robert DeLaGarza thought to himself. It was early July and DeLaGarza was meeting with members of the Texas Minuteman Corps, a new vigilante border patrol outfit that started recruiting in DeLaGarza's county in June.

"They kept talking a lot about shooting illegals, and what they could and couldn't do to make it self-defense of life or property," DeLaGarza said. "One woman kept asking, 'Well, what if they reach for a rock, can we shoot them then? What if they're on private land? Can we shoot them for trespassing?'"

DeLaGarza gave the vigilantes a stern warning: "My community doesn't tolerate racism or racist violence in any form. I told them that if they step one inch out of line, I'm going to hammer their ass."

Later that month in California, two Mexicans were wounded in separate shootings the same night along a 14-mile stretch of the border between Campo and Tecate, Calif., that was being patrolled by the California Minutemen, another new vigilante border patrol group.

…snip…

Inspired by the Minuteman Project, … more than 40 anti-immigration "citizens border patrol" and "internal vigilance" groups have formed since early May. The original Minuteman Project's leaders, Jim Gilchrist and Chris Simcox, have little or no control over most of these splinters, spin-offs and imitators.

SPLC

More recently we've seen increased violence aimed at migrants. This past month alone there were three separate incidents along the Arizona border, two resulting in deaths. We cannot be sure if these attacks were the actions of border vigilantes, or other criminal elements, but whenever there is a growing movement like that of the Minutemen, with it's mix of racism, militarism, and xenophobia, conditions are ripe for violence. When this is coupled with a lack of any real centralized leadership or accountability, violence is all but inevitable.

The original Minuteman Project was already the home of numerous far-right white supremacist and neo-Nazi deviants. Like a cancer, the further break-up of the group will only send these infected cells out to further metastasize and spread their message of hate and violence to infect the nation.

Related:
San Diego Union-Tribune
Washinton Times

tags: immigration, Jim Gilchrist , minutemen, vigilantes

For the second time in a month an Arizona state legislator has received a threatening letter after opposing anti-immigration advocates.

"I never thought that I would fear for my safety or the safety of my family when I took a seat in the Arizona House of Representatives," said Rep. Bill Konopnicki, "None of us should fear for our safety or of those we love."

Arizona Republic

The Safford Republican recently urged his colleagues to show some restraint when imposing business regulations intended to curb illegal immigration, and believes the letter was sent in connection with the issue.

Pausing several times to maintain his composure during a floor speech to fellow representatives, Konopnicki said that there was a "poisonous atmosphere" surrounding immigration and implored House Speaker Jim Weiers "to make this stop." Despite the threats, he said he would not be intimidated, adding, "We need to vote our conscience."

But this was not the first time an Arizona state Representative was threatened over pending legislation involving immigration.

In January, Rep. Kyrsten Sinema faced threats of everything from death to rape when she sponsored House Bill 2286 that would have outlawed border vigilante groups like the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps.

The bill, defeated earlier this month, would have made it a felony punishable by 18 months in prison for citizens to patrol for "illegal activity" when armed with a firearm or other weapon.

The bill had little chance of passing in the Republican controlled legislature, but Sinema, a longtime immigrants rights advocate, proposed it anyway.

What followed the introduction of the bill only proved Sinema's assertions that such groups attract the fringe elements of society. After the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps issued a press release criticizing her bill, hate e-mails started pouring in. "This is the really frightening extreme part of our community," Sinema said.

This particular proposal caught the attention of Minuteman members and their supporters, however. Word immediately went out over Internet message boards and blogs.

…snip…

The e-mails piled up quickly, many of them not only expressing disagreement but threatening Sinema with everything from death to rape.

"The nature of what they were saying was scary," she said, "One wanted to kick me in the uterus until I couldn't have children. Others have all kinds of really lewd and awful threats. There's not even this shared respect for another human being that you may disagree with."

…snip..

The state Department of Public Safety has worked with her over the threats, and when an unidentified package turned up at her office Jan. 22, the building was evacuated. (It turned out to be nothing.)

This wasn't driven by the media," Sinema said. "This came from the Internet. And I've got to tell you, it happens very, very quickly. And it goes in all kinds of crazy directions. There is an article out there saying that I'm in cahoots with a Mexican drug cartel. Stuff like that. It's insane. And, yes, if the goal of these people was to scare me, it worked."

Arizona Republic

No one should really be surprised when deviants like this resort to threats and intimidation. It's the bread and butter of their "movement", whether it's running around the desert trying to catch "border-crossers," standing at the local home improvement center shouting at passing cars, or threatening legislators who oppose them… It's all about intimidation and threats of violence.

They honestly believe they can bully their way into power.

If only they can shout loud enough, tell enough lies, spread enough hate, and scare enough people into submission, they believe they can force the American people into eventually accepting their warped, racist worldview. Like the brownshirts before them, these modern thugs with all their media contacts and favorable right-wing press, are nothing more than street bullies with delusions of grandeur.

Ironically the bill sponsored by Rep Sinema was reference titled "Domestic Terrorism "… a title that apply describes anyone who would try to subvert the democratic process with threats of death and rape.

tags: immigration, minutemen , Kyrsten Sinema, Bill Konopnicki

Mark Twain in his autobiography claimed that, "there are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics." Obviously, Twain never had the misfortune of dealing with today's modern border ruffians, the Minutemen. If he had, he would have found that modern vigilantes have managed to create a forth category of untruth that far surpasses any he could have envisioned.

Never known for their strict adherence to the facts, the Minutemen appear to have thrown all caution to the wind and begun a campaign to propagate fabrications and falsehoods so heinous and divisive that even by their standards they border on the ridiculous.

Until reading some recent minuteman ramblings I was unaware of the "fact" that there were underground mosques along the Mexican border, presumably build for the thousands of "Other than Mexican" terrorists that cross the border each day. I was also ignorant to the fact that prominent Latino leaders, while meeting with congressional allies, discuss the possibility of armed civil unrest and the need to physically attack "white people"

One would hope that this kind of insane and hateful rhetoric would be largely ignored and written off by the American public for what it is; the ramblings of demented racists. Yet, it appears that the Minutemen have garnered an audience eager to hear they're tall-tails and fabrications about boogeymen, terrorists, and crazed murderers. Despite the fact that there isn't an iota for truth in the vast majority of the Minutemen's claims, they are invited by clubs and organizations around the country to enlighten them about the goings on along the southern border.

Perhaps Twain would have recognized the similarities between these charlatans and the patent medicine pitchmen, spirit-world guides, or Wild West showman of his era. Playing on people's ignorance and fear or presenting gross fabrications about people of color has always been part of the American landscape. But, this current crop of modern hucksters are far more insidious than any phony Victorian psychic or washed up gunslinger whose legend had long outpaced reality. They have managed to meld Goebbels advice "that when one lies, one should lie big, and stick to it" with Barnum's claim that "there's a sucker born every minute" to create a propaganda machine that would be the envy of both men.

While speaking to a Napa Valley Republican women's group this week, Minuteman spokesman, Steve Giraud, managed to spin a tale of fear and terror that was crafted to frighten and inflame his audience.

Giraud said his concerns about the 15,000 illegal immigrants who cross the border daily revolve around national security, economics, safety and sovereignty.

"These guys are heavily armed out there," said Giraud. "This isn't just about families coming across looking for a better way of life. It is about a massive drug-smuggling operation."

Terrorism is also a major concern, Giraud said. About 20 percent of those crossing the border illegally are from countries other than Mexico. Agents have even found an underground makeshift mosque near the border, he said.

About 20 percent of those crossing the border are felons, child predators, gang members or drug dealers, Giraud said. The criminal influence is clear in Los Angeles, where black and Hispanic gangs have prompted Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa to call on international aid to stop the escalating violence, Giraud added.

…snip…

Minutemen have witnessed the brutality of the coyotes, who often smuggle drugs along with their human clientele. Giraud said that in one location, Minutemen witnessed young girls and women being raped by coyotes at gunpoint. Female undergarments are often draped over trees on the Mexican side of the desert to remind crossers of the price they will have to pay to cross into America, he said.

St Helena Star

Giraud's words represent a carefully crafted propaganda piece tailored for his targeted audience. The picture he paints of migrants for his mostly white, upper-middle-class, female audience is one ripe with images intended to evoke fear and anger. Rapists, child-molesters, terrorist, gun-toting criminals - these are images that have long been used to mobilize this segment of society against both people of color and foreigners.

In the rhetoric of the old south it was claimed that white women's virtue needed to be protected at any cost from Black men who were nothing more over-sexed savages. This "protection of white women" over time became not only codified law across most of the country, but allowed groups like the Klan and others to justify a reign of terror and murder for nearly a century. Giraud's story of a desert strewn with discarded female undergarments and daily rapes is intended to rekindle these same kind of fears, this time not of wild-eyed Black intruders but of "hot blooded" Latino savages.

The idea of foreigners as terrorists is also nothing new. Jews, Italians, Russians, Germans, Japanese and Chinese immigrants at one time or another were all accused of being, anarchists, communists, traitors, spies or terrorists. Yet, this time Giraud must resort to a little extra deception in order to make his case.

Even the most uninformed in Girauds audience would be cognizant of the fact that our current "terrorist threat" comes not from Mexico or Latin America but rather the Middle-East. So in order to make the linkage, Giraud resorts to one of the oldest tricks in the propagandist's book: he compares apples to oranges.

While his numbers on OTM's (Other than Mexicans) apprehended at the border are within reason, he infers through the reference to terrorism and an underground mosque that OTM is synonymous with Islamic terrorist. Upon even a cursory examination of the facts this is of course untrue.

There have been no reported cases of any Islamic terrorists being apprehended at the southern border. In fact the closest they've ever come was the case of a family of Iraqi Christian refugees caught in Mexico on their way to the US.

The overwhelming majority of OTM's are as the name implies - people from countries other than Mexico, meaning those from Central or South America. The fact that there are more Salvadorans in the US than El Salvador attests to that fact. Anyone with a passing familiarity of migration or immigration statistics would be aware of this fact. Giraud's omission of the facts is of course intentional.

As to the claim of the underground mosque … that's pure fabrication thrown in for effect.

Giraud's claim of migrant criminality also is based on misinformation. His claim that "20% of those crossing the border are felons, child predators, gang members or drug dealers," … again pure fabrication.

The most recent statistics on prison incarceration released by the government showed that non- citizens made up a little over 6% of the prison population in state and federal institutions. This is the same percentage they represent as a part of the overall population. Their incarceration rates are no higher than any other group in the country. This of course would be impossible if Giraud's assertions were true that 1 in 5 migrants are hardened criminal .

In fact studies have shown that newly arrived immigrants have a far lower rate of criminal activity than any other group studied.

When Giraud refers to the current sad situation in Los Angels he again engages in a lie of omission. He neglects to mention that those engaged in this activity are not newly arrived migrants, but rather native-born Hispanic-Americans, most of them 3rd generation Americans or more. The same societal factors such as poverty and discrimination that have fostered gang culture in the Black community have done so in the Latino community as well, leading to escalating violence and criminality. Giraud relies on his audience's inability to differentiate between the newly arrived migrants and a small percentage of the 47 million Hispanic-Americans exgaged in gang activity to paint a picture of lawlessness and violence that’s simply doesn't exists.

Giraud's carefully crafted mix of gross exaggerations, outright lies, and coded racist rhetoric is a masterful piece of propaganda. As Goebbels said, effective propaganda needn't be based in reality, it merely needs to be bigger than life and repeated frequently…. The propagandist creates his or her own reality.

But Giraud has nothing on Linda Muller, a former Pat Buchanan campaign aid and member of Tom Tancredo's Team American staff, who currently writes for the Minuteman Project.

Unlike Giraud, who specializes in winning over new converts, Muller preaches to the choir. This allows her to take on flights of fantasy that would be laughed at in the outside world.

In one recent column she recounts the tale of some brave minutemen who "infiltrated" a meeting of prominent Latino leaders whose goal was to instigate civil unrest, reclaim Atzlan, and engage in violence against "white people".

Minutemen Go Inside Latino Immigration Meeting - Racism Espoused, Calls for Violence Against "Whites"

by Linda Muller - Minuteman Project - ForTheCause.us

There are many radical Latino groups calling for the violent overthrow of their "white" oppressors and the return of the American west to the mythical Aztlan from which they believe their land was stolen. Many Americans do not believe these fringe groups have any power and influence, so they dismiss them as harmless. Yet these groups continually draw U.S. Congressmen and staff members to their meetings. Corporate benefactors and foundations contribute funds and other means of support that enable these groups to thrive and proliferate. Recently, two representatives from Jim Gilchrist's Minuteman Project attended a meeting of the National Alliance for Human Rights, whose coordinator is Armando Navarro, a professor at the University of California, Riverside. Minuteman Project National Spokesman Raymond Herrera and National Rally Coordinator Robin Hvidston, two of Gilchrist's most street-savvy rally organizers, were alarmed by the racist rhetoric that permeated the meeting, punctuated by calls for violence against "white" people.

…snip…

After referring to the Minutemen as racists, Navarro gave opening remarks. He talked about the recent ICE raids. Then the floor was open for comments. "I was astounded by the nonstop hate talk about 'white' people," Hvidston said.

"There was talk of how poorly Latino children are doing in school. White people were blamed. Talk about raids at work sites by ICE. White people were blamed. Talk about not enough Hispanic school teachers. White people were blamed. Talk about imprisonment of Latinos. White people were blamed," Hvidston recounted.

"People stood up and gave testimonials about white people being the cause of poor education, prison sentences, police brutality… They used slang such as 'gavachos' to refer to white people."

…snip…

Navarro is planning a march for March 17th in San Bernardino. He said they will be calling on cities such as L.A. to join them. He said if civil disobedience is needed to stop any future ICE raids, so be it. One man stated that if guns and violence are needed, they should use violence to overwhelm the white people. He encouraged the community to take what they want by overwhelming and overpowering force.

…snip…

Also in attendance at this February 13 meeting in San Bernardino were three staff members from Congressman Joe Baca's office. Baca represents California's 43rd District and he is a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.

Minuteman Project

Obviously the bar for factual, responsible reporting is set extremely low when dealing with the minutemen's own "press" efforts. But even by those low standards, Mullers article is extreme. It represents the lowest form of divisive race baiting, and can only be viewed as an attempt to further inflame and fuel the violent tendencies already prevalent in the group.

The obsession with race, and the projection of racist tendencies upon ones supposed adversaries in order to justify ones beliefs is a classic propaganda tool. We must never forget that the Nazis always portrayed themselves as victims of those they oppressed. This is also true of the Klan, and other current day white supremacists. Muller is only following in a long line of racist propagandists that goes back through history to the beginning of the written word.

tags: immigration, minutemen , rasism

From the "If it looks like a duck, and quacks like a duck" department comes this story of murder at the border:

Gunmen attack migrants, kill man and injure teen

Authorities are searching for four men who attacked 12 undocumented immigrants, killed an Eloy man and shot a teenager, Pinal County Sheriff's Office officials said.

Authorities said David Norris Jr. was driving a pickup truck containing 12 illegal immigrants late Saturday in an Eloy farm field when four heavily armed men in a white full-size van began firing on them.

All four men were wearing military-style berets, camouflage pants and shirts, authorities said.

"As far as being a group we don't know that yet," said Pinal County Sheriff's Office Detective Buddy Johnson, who is investigating the case. "Is there any group of people we are looking at? No. Anybody can dress in anything and they can do this."

Detectives aren't sure of a motive, that the attackers could have been vigilantes, rival smugglers or criminals trying to steal drugs, although no drugs were found in the truck, Johnson said.

"Anything's possible, we are taking all the information we can," Johnson said.

Arizona Republic

OK …let me get this straight.

Four guys dressed in camo with military-style berets ambush a pickup full of people they assume are undocumented immigrants in the middle of a farm field and Sheriff Buddy Johnson's not sure whether they are part of an organized group?

Were they going to a costume party?....did they just happened to all pick the same outfits that day like a couple of starlets who show up at an awards ceremony in the same dress?

Let me clue you in Barney Fife …Any time four guys are wearing the same clothes, that makes them part of group … you know, like a sports team …..it's called a uniform Detective.

So Detective Johnson, who do you think these men in military-style uniforms might be?

Do you know of any group or individuals in the area that are in the habit of dressing up and roaming around the desert looking for migrants?

Norris, 46, of Eloy, was fatally shot and 19-year-old Andres de Jesus, from Oaxaca, Mexico, was shot in the leg during the attack, authorities said.

"They told them to get down to the floor and then they shot and everyone started running," said Alejandro Ramos, a spokesman with the Mexican Consulate in Tucson, from the immigrants' reports. "They didn't take anything. It's pretty strange. We aren't sure who (the attackers) are."

...

Johnson said due to the large amount of blood found in the back of the pickup, a third victim may have also been shot but has not been found.

The four suspects were wearing military-style berets, one red and three black, and green camouflage pants and shirts, authorities said.

Three of the suspects are described as White and one Hispanic, who spoke limited Spanish, authorities said.

Most of the undocumented victims fled from the attack, but authorities were able to talk to five witnesses, ages 14 to 24, who helped produce a sketch of one of the attackers, Johnson said.

Arizona Republic

Let's see. We've got four guys, three white and one Hispanic, dressed paramilitary-style who order a truckload of migrants to lie on the floor then start shooting at them.

No drugs are found in the truck and they didn't take anything, so "criminals trying to steal drugs" seems far fetched.

They spoke limited Spanish so "rival smugglers" looks like a long shot also.

So who does that leave?

Come on detective think about.

Here I'll give you a clue:

What do you think…is it possible?

Could it be one of the myriad of border vilgilante groups roamimg the desert?

The night of April 3, armed vigilantes camped along Border Road in a series of watch posts set-up for the Minuteman Project, a month-long action in which revolving casts of 150 to 200 anti-immigration militants wearing cheap plastic "Undocumented Border Patrol Agent" badges mobilized in southeastern Arizona. Their stated goal was to "do the job our government refuses to do" and "protect America" from the "tens of millions of invading illegal aliens who are devouring and plundering our nation."

At Station Two, Minuteman volunteers grilled bratwursts and fantasized about murder.

"It should be legal to kill illegals," said Carl, a 69-year old retired Special Forces veteran who fought in Vietnam and now lives out West. "Just shoot 'em on sight. That's my immigration policy recommendation. You break into my country, you die."

Carl was armed with a revolver chambered to fire shotgun shells. He wore this hand cannon in a holster below a shirt that howled "American bad asses" in red, white and blue. The other vigilantes assigned to Station Two included a pair of self-professed members of the National Alliance, a violent neo-Nazi organization. These men, who gave their names only as Johnny and Michael, were outfitted in full-body camouflage and strapped with semi-automatic pistols.

Earlier that day, Johnny and Michael had scouted sniper positions in the rolling, cactus-studded foothills north of Border Road, taking compass readings and drawing maps for future reference.

"I agree completely," Michael said. "You get up there with a rifle and start shooting four or five of them a week, the other four or five thousand behind them are going to think twice about crossing that line."

With a grilled sausage in one hand and a cheap night vision scope in the other, Johnny scanned the brush in Mexico, spitting distance away.

"The thing to do would be to drop the bodies just a few hundred feet into the U.S. and just leave them there, with lights on them at night," he said. "That sends the message 'No Trespassing,' in any language."

Arizona Showdown Southern Poverty Law Center

Jeez, how many migrants have to be attacked or killed before people start to realize that these people are terrorists and murderers? Yeah, the majority are a bunch of blowhard racists who never even waddle out of their lawn chairs longer then it takes to grab a hotdog or a beer, but in amongst them are some certifiable psychos and sociopaths. Anyone who has spent any time at their websites or read their internet forums knows what they really believe and what they are capable of doing. They advocate hatred and violence. They view themselves as "warriors" and "patriots" in a battle against an "invading horde."

Anyone who doubts they are capable of this level of violence is dangerously naïve.

My advice to Detective Johnson ... open your eyes ....and do your job, damn it.

Anyone with information on the attack is asked to call the Pinal County Sheriff's Office Homicide Division at 1-800-358-4636 or 1-520-866-5105.

tags: immigration, border deaths , vigilantes, Arizona border

In a major blow to the border vigilante movement, a jury in the civil trial of Roger Barnett found him guilty Wednesday of intentionally inflicting emotional distress, negligence, unlawful imprisonment and assault. After three hours of deliberations in the Superior Court in Bisbee, Arizona, the jury in the civil trial ruled in favor of the plaintiffs awarding them $98,000.

The charges stem from an October 30, 2004 incident when Roger Barnett, his wife and brother, Donald Barnett stopped Arturo, Ronald, Vanese and Angelique Morales and the girls' friend, Emma English, while the group was on a hunting trip. Upon finding the group on land he leases for grazing livestock from the Arizona State Land Department, Barnett yelled racist obscenities and pointed his chambered, AR-15 assault rifle at the three young girls (ages 11 and 9) and the two men and threatened to kill them.

tags: immigration, Roger Barnett , vigilante , Minutemen

The hunters, all of whom are Americans of Mexican decent, said Barnett insulted them with racial slurs and threatened to shoot them - charges Barnett denied. Ronald Morales said he tried to get the county attorney to press criminal charges against Barnett, but was told no jury would convict him.

Morales' attorney, Jesus Romo Vejar, said he hoped the local prosecutor would now reconsider filing criminal charges against Barnett, and he hoped others who had had problems with the rancher also would be encouraged to file civil claims.

"Everybody thought that it was impossible to win in Cochise County, and we proved to them that it's not true," he said.

Romo Vejar called the case "historic" in the county's legal history, and said it was significant a jury of seven whites and one Hispanic ruled against Barnett.

The Morales suit was sponsored by two civil rights groups, the Border Action Network and the Southern Poverty Law Center, who have accused Barnett of abusing the illegal immigrants he detains on his ranch.

Douglas Daily Dispatch

The trial began on November 14th and included emotional and intense testimony from the children, their parents, psychologists, land surveyors, sheriffs' deputy, Arizona Game and Fish employee, and other bow hunters who had also been physically assaulted and barraged with racist insults by Barnett. The families were represented by Jesus Romo Vejar, a long-time civil rights and immigrant rights attorney.

"We're really relieved to see that finally Roger Barnett has been held responsible for the actions he has taken and the violence he has inflicted - and not just against the members of the Douglas community," said Jennifer Allen, director of the Border Action Network. "This also makes a statement to migrants who have been abused that these sorts of actions are, in fact, illegal."

Barnett estimates he has detained and turned over to the Border Patrol between 10,000 and 12,000 illegal immigrants during the past decade.

Barnett declined to comment on the verdict, saying his attorney had advised him not to speak on the matter.

Douglas Daily Dispatch

Barnett, known for dressing in military garb and caps with insignia resembling the United States Border Patrol’s, represents a special prize to the immigrant rights groups. He is ubiquitous on Web sites, mailings and brochures put out by groups monitoring the Mexican border and, with family members, was an inspiration for efforts like the Minutemen civilian border patrols.

“The Barnetts, probably more than any people in this country, are responsible for the vigilante movement as it now exists,” said Mark Potok, legal director of the Southern Poverty Law Center, which tracks the groups. “They were the recipients of so much press coverage and they kept boasting, and it was out of those boasts that the modern vigilante movement sprang up.”

NYT

"This is an historic moment," reflects Jennifer Allen, Director of the Border Action Network. "This victory is just the beginning. We can guarantee that every official who tried to sweep this case and issue under the rug and who still has the capacity of bringing criminal charges will hear from us."

"The door has been opened by this very important decision condemning the violence and trauma caused by border vigilantism," continues Allen. "We've already seen the courage the Morales and English girls as well as the jury had for standing up for what is right and fair. Now we are looking for the courage of our public officials to uphold human dignity and end vigilante impunity."

The long-term ramifications of the decision are yet to be assessed, but other border vigilante groups will certainly be affected by the jury's verdict. Vigilante groups have long assumed that they can operate with virtual impunity along the border. Additionally, groups like the Minutemen have expanded their operations further from traditional border areas recently and taken on up a new campaign to root out undocumented immigrants at their jobs and in their homes. This decision will certainly come into play as they continue to expand their reach into areas of enforcement well beyond the commonly accepted legal boundaries

Some additional text courtesy of The Border Action Network.

Last week, when student protesters prevented Minuteman founder Jim Gilchrist from speaking at New York's Columbia University, the outrage from the right-wing was deafening. Lou Dobbs recounted the "unprovoked attack" on Gilchrist and how he had to "run for safety" from the stage. He then went on to bemoan the "death of free speech" at the "liberal" institution.

Bill O'Reilly did Dobbs one better warning of the "dangerous far-left" and how Columbia was a "disgrace, not interested in fee speech or learning…only indoctrinating leftists and radicals."

Gilchrist himself on his website wrote a long dissertation on the death of free speech and a warning about the tyranny of mob rule demonstrated by the incident.

Both Dobbs and O'Reilly featured selected video clips of the "riot." But, they forgot to inform their audiences of just how edited their clips really were.

tags: immigration, Jim Gilchrist , minutemen , Lou Dobbs, Bill O'Reilly, Columbia University

From the bastion of free speech, Mr. "shut up!" O'Reilly, we have this little fair and balanced piece of reporting:

and from Mr. Dobbs, this little unbiased gem:

Not to be topped, the paragon of free speech, and human rights, Jim Gilchrist gives us this little missive:

There is a national treasure so dear to the American people that it sometimes requires our life, liberty and sacred honor to protect it. The center piece of our National Treasury of Rights is the freedom of speech, the very cornerstone of self governance that countless heroes have fought and died for to preserve.

The United States of America has been the beacon of freedom throughout the world, empowering people whether great or common, rich or poor, strong or weak, to speak up with confidence, expressing views and vocalizing their beliefs.

When priceless free speech is suppressed by force, threats of violence, or intimidation, then the cornerstone of our Constitution begins to crumble and eventually the entire foundation of our nation, long coveted as a nation governed under the rule of law, comes tumbling down.

When such a freedom is replaced with tyrannical bellowing and "mob rule", then only the demons of disorder are allowed to speak and the voice of a nation is muted. It is my greatest fear that in the market place of ideas the voice of free Americans will be stifled by the disease of "politically correct paralysis".

The abolition of freedom of speech carried out against The Minuteman Project speakers and Columbia University's Republican Club at Roone Auditorium on October 4 is but a symptom of a deeper national infection; an infection of complacency that numbs the American people into the belief that freedom, especially freedom of speech, is reserved only for the meanest thugs wielding the biggest clubs.

JimGilchrist on Free Speech

Luckily for those who actually want to see what really happened, the Spanish language station, Univision, caught the ENTIRE episode on tape. Poor little Jimmy Gilchrist attacked by all those crazed brown leftists for no apparent reason at all.

Keep your eye on the minuteman on the right with the baseball cap and white tea shirt to see who really provoked whom and why a "riot" ensued. Or perhaps it was the guys on the left trying to rip the sign from the protesters hands .

To hear the likes of the lying bully, Bill O'Reilly lecture on about free speech… would be laughable if it wasn't so sad. The same is true of Dobbs who rarely lets an opposing view get a word in edgewise between his interruptions and mock righteous indignation.

As for Gilchrist… he's all about the free speech that one... Talk about the tyranny of mob rule, and free spech being "reserved only for the meanest thugs wielding the biggest clubs", he's got to be kidding.

He should have been forced to take a subway back to his hotel, then let him opened his big pie hole on the train and he would have gotten a good healthy dose of free speech. He wouldn't have lasted a minute… even the old ladies would have given him a good going over - and a quick kick in the ass.

John McCain(R-AZ) has obviously begun his 2008 presidential bid in earnest with a dive into a slime pool, hoping to gain favor with the bottom feeders that make up the most extreme element of his party. In just another demonstration of just how little real integrity and backbone the maverick "straight talking" Senator from Arizona has left, he formally announced his endorsement of beleaguered Minuteman congressional candidate, Randy Graf, running in his states eight district. Graf who has been shunned by party regulars due to his extremist positions is viewed as having little hope of capturing the seat left vacant by the outgoing Republican, Jim Kolbe. But apparently McCain is once again willing to "forgive and forget" in the name of political expediency.

Just as McCain was willing to forgive team Bush for their vicious attacks upon him in 2000 when they ran a smear campaign accusing him of fathering an illegitimate black baby when pictures of his adopted daughter from Bangladesh appeared, he's now willing to court the Neanderthal vote in hopes of getting a new mailing address at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. All this despite the fact that the Graf and his Minuteman cohorts have not been shy in their distain for the Senator.

But perhaps he's just unaware of exactly how Randy Graf and his minutemen friends really feel about him:

tags: immigration, Randy Graf , Gabrielle Giffords , AZ-8, John McCain

From the Minuteman website:

"John McCain is dead in my eyes. And he is delusional if he thinks -- after his asinine pro-illegal-alien stand -- that he has ANY chance of winning the presidency.

Or, maybe I'M delusional to think so. Maybe there ARE enough John McCain junkies out there who would stupidly vote him into office. Heaven help us if that happens."

Link

"John McCain has surely been a traitor to the Republican Party, and seems to be a representative of the Illegal Immigrants more that his constituents. I have wondered and hope that I am wrong when I wonder if Saint John like so many other political hopefuls such as John Murtha, John Kerry et al, went to Nam to get their ticket punched so they could come back and run for political office.

McCain has definite proof of what happened to him in Nam but many of the other members of congress who readily wave their hands as veterans and are called war heroes by their admirers I believe could not stand a close scrutiny of their military records.

I don't wish anyone dead but I wouldn't be disappointed if he and George Bush took adjoining condos on some Mexican Beach permanently, and then they would have easy access to that cheap labor."

Link

"I realize that McRhoid’s proof of what happened to him in Vietnam makes him out to be a hero. But that is his proof and the speculation of his admiral daddy’s influence on that proof should not be discounted. If his NVA records ever become available for comparison, I would like to review them to see how well he served our nation and to see if there are any embers of a fire that resulted in the smoke over his time as a POW.

Remember that Benedict Arnold himself was considered to be a ‘war hero’ up until he showed his true colors. McRhoid has shown us his and they aren’t ours."

Link

"All one has to do is note Mr. McCain's voting record in regards to the Second Amendment to realize he was turned in Hanoi. He's a commie underneath the facade. When seen in this light, everything else he does makes sense."
Link

Or maybe McCain is unaware of just how much of a minuteman Randy Graf really is.

From the Graf webpage:

Randy Graf is a Minuteman. He enthusiastically answered the call when the Minuteman roject was formed in April 2005. He was there on the first day in Tombstone, Arizona where he lent a hand to the Project’s organizers in ensuring that registration and orientation went off successfully. He was a part of the month-long event on the border.
And he was there as a featured speaker at the celebratory closing event of the Project.

Now is the time to take the Minuteman Project to the next level and it is time to send a Minuteman to Congress to represent American citizens who want something more done about illegal immigration and the lack of border security. The Minuteman Project can’t go on forever. We need to have the federal government take over and do the job that they are obligated to do.Randy Graf is ready and able, the target has been identified, and the goal is achievable. To do it, this Minuteman needs YOUR help and continuing support.

Imagine that...sending a Minuteman to Congress. You can help strike a blow against the powerful groups in Washington that continue to condone the massive violation of our national borders. You can be a part of taking Minuteman Project to the next level by helping Randy Graf get elected to Congress where he will serve alongside Rep. Tom Tancredo and work for you to stop the border invasion. You can’t vote for Randy Graf, but Randy Graf will vote for you. He knows the issues. He knows what needs to be done. He needs your continuing support now so that when he gets to Congress you will get his support.
votegraf.com

From the Minuteman website:

The #1 issue for Republican Randy Graf is stopping illegal immigration, defending our borders and protecting US national sovereignty. Randy is also a rock solid conservative on both economic and social issues and he is pro gun rights. Randy Graf needs your help! Randy Graf is just like Tom Tancredo and we need a lot more Tom Tancredos in Congress.
The number one race for conservatives in the USA is the Randy Graf campaign for Congress in Arizona, district #8. Nationwide grassroots conservatives can help Randy win by 1) sending money and 2) making GOTV phone calls from YOUR HOME to key precincts in AZ # 08. Please call the Graf HQ at xxx-xxx-xxxx and offer to volunteer no matter where you live in the USA. They will email phone lists to call the last 3 days of the election.
MinutemaHQ.com

Or perhaps even as the minutemen themselves have figured out; "it shows McCain for what he really is...a panderer."

If it wasn't clear when he was kissing and hugging Bush, or when he had a little birthday bash with the President just days after Katrina while Bush was hiding with his head in the sand, it certainly is clear now… even to those whose knuckles might scrape the ground while walking…McCain is now a man devoid of all backbone, one that will do anything and say anything in his attempt to gain higher office. All the "straight talk" in the world cannot hide McCain's utter lack of principles.

Randy Graf, Republican candidate from Arizona's 8th congressional district, has been facing some tough times of late.

At first he was heralded by the extreme right as the golden boy of the anti-immigration movement. His primary victory in Sept. was viewed as a validation not only for the Minuteman Candidate, but the movement he had helped to start. The victory was all the more sweet for the minuteman types due to the strong opposition from party leadership. Fearing Graf's radical views would hurt the party, they had endorsed his opponent, Steve Huffman, to the tune of $200,000, but he still prevailed.

Yet, after a very brief honeymoon, Graf and the party hierarchy went their separate ways.

Two weeks ago, dismal poll numbers coupled with a new controversy revolving around Graf's possible ties to white supremacist David Duke, led the Republican National Congressional Committee to all but pull the plug on his campaign.

On Sept 21 they announced plans to cancel all scheduled funding for Graf advertising after October 3. With more than a month to go before the election, the pullout left Graf with a $1 million hole in his campaign budget.

Now it appears the Arizona bully-boy has been relegated to tagging along with the more popular kids in hopes of reviving his faltering campaign.

tags: immigration, Randy Graf , Gabrielle Giffords , AZ-8, KarlRove, NRCC

The campaign trail turned into the campaign caravan for Sen. Jon Kyl Monday.

Kyl spent the day trekking across Southern Arizona to meet with supporters at various campaign events.
Much to the surprise of Kyl's staffers, however, Republican congressional candidate Randy Graf tagged along.

Graf appeared at an event in Marana, then followed the senator to SaddleBrooke, where Kyl spoke to about 50 supporters. Graf was able to get a few words in at the event's closing, but many were clearly surprised he was there. In fact, by the time Graf got the microphone, about a third of the crowd had left.

Kyl has endorsed Graf, and Graf's campaign had asked if he could join Kyl at SaddleBrooke.
For whatever reason, Kyl staffers didn't get the memo.

"We were surprised," said Kyl spokeswoman Vicki Mata Myles.

She said Graf's campaign had contacted Kyl's Tucson office sometime last week.

In any event, Graf was supposed to speak at the beginning of the forum and not the end, throwing off some of the Saddle-Brooke residents, she said.

Graf's campaign spokesman, R.T. Gregg, insisted Graf didn't crash the forum."They knew we were coming," he said. "We were invited.

Arizona Daily Star

Even a visit from Karl Rove last Friday didn't turn out as expected for little Randy.

Head cheerleader Karl showed up showed up in Tuscon to lead a little pep-rally for Arizona candidates. Yet in the end Graf walked away empty handed.

Karl hammered away on the familiar Republican talking point; "Democrats can’t be trusted to fight the War on Terror" accusing the Democratic congressional leadership of a “cut-and-run philosophy on terror.”

Conspicuously absent from Rove's little speech was any mention of the one topic the single issue candidate needed him to talk about: immigration. No mention of building walls, the invasion from the south, closing the borders or any of the topics Graf has built his whole campaign upon.

The Bottom line…Karl did nothing to help the beleaguered Minutemen.

Graf now lags behind his opponent, Gabrielle Giffords, not only in the polls but in fund raising. Giffords, had raised nearly $1.2 million for the race even before the primary. Graf on the other hand had yet to surpass $500,000 in campaign funds according to the most recent Federal Election Commission filings of August 23. He also had just $82,000 cash on hand—Giffords had more than $300,000.

In the polls Graf's prospects look even worse. Although a just released Reuters poll puts him only eight points behind his Democratic challenger, a Tuscon Weekly/Wick poll done during the same period shows Gifford's lead at 18%. Either way you cut it Randy's in big trouble.

Who knows what Randy will do next.

Maybe he'll just continue to tag along with the big boy candidates – whether they want him to or not. That is until they tell him to go home…his mommy's calling him.

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