<p>Grijalva: Have FBI probe alleged militia-racist link Rep.-elect denounces patrols; they call his bigotry charges 'lies'</p>
<p>Vigilante group hurting towns' images, business, residents say Congressman-elect Raúl Grijalva says his first official act will be to ask the FBI to investigate alleged links between civilian militias in southern Arizona and white supremacist groups. "If you shine the light on the cockroaches, they don't like it," Grijalva said at a press conference yesterday hosted by Coalicion de Derechos Humanos, a group that advocates for illegal immigrants. "The more we ignore it, the more it's going to fester," said Grijalva, who will be the first representative from the new Congressional District 7, which stretches from Tucson to Yuma. Grijalva also said he wants a "declarative condemnation" of the militias by the U.S. Border Patrol. Border Patrol spokesman Ryan Scudder said the militias have the same right to operate and to speak their mind as Derechos Humanos. However, Border Patrol doesn't issue opinions on specific groups. Grijalva spoke out against the Sierra Vista-based American Border Patrol, Texas-based Ranch Rescue and the Civil Homeland Defense, organized by Tombstone newspaper publisher Chris Simcox. Grijalva said he believes all three organizations are racist. A report released yesterday by the Tucson-based Border Action Network alleges that groups such as the American Border Patrol are local fronts for neo-Nazi groups such as the St. Louis-based Council of Conservative Citizens. The report says such groups provided funding to local vigilante groups but no specific amounts are given. Glenn Spencer of the American Border Patrol said claims that his group is connected to racist organizations are "absolute lies."</p>