March 30, 2005

Protests, legal observers set to counter Minutemen vigilantes

What better place than Tombstone, Arizona, where gun-toting actors dressed like sheriffs and outlaws keep the nostalgia of the Wild West alive, to be the focal point of yet another vigilante convergence. The Minuteman Project, as it is called, is being organized by two of southern Arizona's most notorious and outspoken border vigilantes: Chris Simcox and Jim Gilchrist. Their plan is to place "observers" every quarter mile along a 20-mile stretch of border from Douglas to the San Pedro River during the month of April.

However, their actions will not go unopposed. Legal observers are being trained to watch over and document the Minutemen. Counter protests, vigils and other border activities are also planned to take place throughout April. ( April Unity Events )

The Minutemen's rhetoric is rooted in racism and a twisted interpretation of history and economics. They blame the migrants for everything, then blame the government for not shutting them out, all the while overlooking the impacts of U.S. free trade policies that are forcing people off their land all over Latin America, leaving few options but to come to the country that caused all the problems in the first place.