http://www.chron.com/cs/CDA/ssistory.mp ... an/3340847

Sept. 5, 2005, 10:44PM
'White ribbon' foes to greet Minutemen
Valley church group organizes a peaceful response
Associated Press

BROWNSVILLE - A local church group plans a peaceful "white ribbon" campaign in response to the activation of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps in the Rio Grande Valley.
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The group from San Felipe de Jesus Church calls itself Social Justice and Peace Pastoral and hopes to start the campaign Oct. 1, the date the Minuteman group plans to begin its operation "Secure our Border."

"It's a response to the Minuteman project that offers prayer and dialogue instead of fear and division," said Elizabeth GarcÃÂ*a, a ribbon campaign organizer.

White ribbons would be distributed pyramid style with every participant finding 10 people to wear a ribbon and those 10 people finding 10 others, for example.

The Minuteman group is planning to patrol Texas' border with Mexico in October, repeating an action it took along Arizona's border in April.

Father Michael Seifert, who is with San Felipe de Jesus, said that organizing in conjunction with the Catholic church makes sense because the church's position is pro-immigration.

"People from out of town, who aren't familiar with the culture, walking around with guns, is the last thing Brownsville needs," Seifert said.

Another concern, he said, is potential conflicts in Brownsville with the Brown Berets, a California-born Hispanic civil rights group that has proclaimed it will combat the Minuteman movement.