Posted on 10/19/2006 8:09:25 AM PDT by SwinneySwitch
Several weeks before the scheduled end of the Minuteman Project’s Laredo effort, the volunteer force has quietly left the area.Border Patrol officials along the Texas border couldn’t confirm whether Minuteman groups reported any border-crossers in the Laredo area during their stay, but Minuteman sources said they left the area after a successful vigil.
Tim Bueler, a spokesman for Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist, said the border-watchers “claimed victory” after about two weeks because illegal activity stopped in the areas they patrolled.
The group then shifted its efforts to the El Paso area, said Bueler, who is accompanying Gilchrist on a national tour in support of his book, “Minutemen: The Battle to Secure America’s Borders.”
Gilchrist is suing Columbia University on First Amendment grounds after a fight broke out earlier this month during a speech he was invited to give at the school. Bueler said attacks on the Minutemen are becoming normal at stops on the book tour.
Bueler also said the group is giving the book away free to Columbia students because of the incident, which they say was provoked by college liberals who hit Gilchrist and hurled racial epithets at Marvin Stewart, an African-American board member of the Minuteman Project.
When Operation Sovereignty was announced, it was a joint venture between the national group, the Texas Minutemen and the Arizona-based American Border Patrol.
Texas Minutemen leader Shannon McGaulley said in September that the effort would initially focus on areas between Laredo and Eagle Pass, and he expected anywhere from 500 to 2,000 volunteers to help stake out border ranches and report immigrants.
McGaulley has not returned calls seeking comment in the weeks since then.
Doug Mosier, a Border Patrol spokesman for the El Paso sector, said Minutemen and similar groups sporadically come to the sector, which covers the border from Hudspeth County through New Mexico.
Mosier said the Border Patrol hasn’t had any problems with the Minutemen and the group’s members have made calls leading to the apprehension of undocumented immigrants.
He could not say how many reports have come from Minuteman groups because many of the calls are made anonymously. The sector takes many calls daily reporting border-crossers, he said.
The Border Patrol’s Del Rio sector has had no reports from any border watch groups, said Supervisory Agent Hilario Leal. He said he hasn’t spoken with any of the Minutemen since one initial encounter, and he doesn’t know if the group has pulled out or if it is continuing the watch on private ranches.
Meanwhile, the Laredo sector has had no contact at all with the Minutemen, said spokeswoman Sarah Melendez.
On Sept. 11, members of the group and other supporters kicked off the vigil here in Laredo, which was intended to highlight the neglect of immigration law enforcement along the border and was supposed to last until Election Day, Nov. 7.
(Clay Reddick may be reached at (956) 728-2582 or by e-mail at clay@lmtonline.com)
Minuteman Ping!
I guess they are showing how illegal crossings can be stopped dead one location at a time.
ping
We need more like them, since our own President refuses to do his job on the border.
Yep, in the case of Laredo - Eagle Pass the watch area we were working consisted of about 40 miles of border. It was south of Eagle Pass about 10 miles to way off in "no-man's-land" which is south of El Indo going to Laredo. Even the pavement dies out and then it is NOTHING but dirt road all the way to Laredo. Several days after arriving and having the rally in front of the Laredo BP Station even the agents in the field were impressed. Activity had dropped to near zero in the areas we were observing.
On the other hand, the activity in El Paso, Clint, Fabens, Ft Hancock areas was just rocking on. So, the point having been mase in the Laredo - Eagle Pass area and volunteers were needed at the El Paso watch area, it was desided to lift and shift.
I got a group of 6 just last night in a pecan orchard east of Fabens, which is about the daily average for everyone here when they are active, which is most of the time. So, as far as moving the volunteers out of Laredo - Eagle Pass to El Paso... ya gotta make hay where the sun is shining.
Right now a few of the volunteers are on their way to El Paso to protest the sentencing of the two BP agents that had the nerve to actually enforce the law against a drug smuggler during the commission of his crime.
They were convicted of removing evidence (shell casings) and lying on their reports.
The MM are turning into Jesse Jackson.
Yea, if Mr. Clay Reddick (reporter), were to actually read the Operation Sovereignty web page he would note that the watch area is indicated as Laredo - El Paso. And no, we don't blab info as to an exact schedule or location for OBVIOUS reasons. Of course if it happens to be a slow news day and the reporter has a slant they are trying to sell you wind up with a headline like this...
"Silent goodbye: Minutemen leave city ahead of schedule."
Ya dang right it was silent. That is what they get after BP management was reporting our positions to the Mexican Government on previous border watches.
Our protest has nothing to do with that. Read my statement...
a few of the volunteers are on their way to El Paso to protest the sentencing
We are not protesting the finding of wrongdoing, it is the politicizing of the conviction via the anticipated sentence.
The MM are turning into Jesse Jackson.
You know, it is jackass remarks like that which make it VERY hard for me to maintain my membership here. Of course, if you would prefer to send me a private email address I would be pleased to let you know what I really think of your statements.
Fair enough, my apologies.
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