Thread: Volunteers Plan to Man Texas Border

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/co ... 01783.html

Volunteers Plan to Man Texas Border

By ELIZABETH WHITE
The Associated Press
Monday, August 21, 2006; 11:15 PM

SAN ANTONIO -- Hundreds of volunteers plan to keep watch over the Texas-Mexico border near Laredo beginning Sept. 11, aiding the U.S. Border Patrol's effort to stop illegal immigration.
The eight-week "Operation Sovereignty" _ to begin on the fifth anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attacks and end on Election Day, Nov. 7 _ is meant to "bring national awareness to the illegal alien invasion crisis," said Minuteman Project founder Jim Gilchrist.
Texas Minutemen president Shannon McGauley said he expects anywhere from 800 to 2,000 attendees. The American Border Patrol of Arizona, another volunteer group, also will participate, Gilchrist said.
The Minuteman Project is different from the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, which also patrols the border and reports illegal immigrants to authorities.
The Minuteman Project has a policy of "passive activity," and McGauley said the volunteers will only report illegal immigrant sightings to the Border Patrol and will not approach border crossers or interfere with officers.
Reynaldo Garza, acting chief patrol agent for the Laredo border sector, said Minuteman patrols have aided in immigrant arrests in the past. He added that the most important communication with the Border Patrol is that "we know where they are, and they know where we are."
"We depend on them to pass information on to us, and that's what the Minutemen will be doing," Garza said.
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On the Net:
Minuteman Project: http://www.minutemanproject.com
© 2006 The Associated Press

i wanna go stupid work

Looks like Reynaldo Garza's singing a different tune now.

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?news ... 9392&rfi=6

Border Patrol chief doesn’t want Minutemen near agents

BY MIGUEL TIMOSHENKOV, LAREDO MORNING TIMES
08/24/2006

The head of the Border Patrol said Wednesday he doesn’t want members of the Minuteman Project working near his agents when they come to the Laredo area next month.The civilian group, which reports illegal immigrants to immigration authorities, is expected to start patrolling the border in the Laredo area on Sept. 11 and continue through Nov. 7.

Acting Chief Patrol Agent Reynaldo Garza of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection Laredo Sector said he can’t prevent the civilians from coming to Laredo, but said they won’t be allowed to interfere with official business.

John Cristian Esquivel, deputy chief, said the agency wants to know where the Minuteman members will be to avoid any problems.

“We’re not going to tell them what they can or can’t do. They are responsible for their own actions,” Esquivel said. “They can be on private property. It’s a matter of who will allow them to occupy their land.”

Texas Minuteman president Shannon McGauley said earlier this week that he expects as many as 2,000 people to participate in the weeks-long patrols. McGauley told the Associated Press that his group will only report illegal immigrant sightings to the Border Patrol and will not approach the immigrants or interfere with law officers.

He declined to say exactly where the members would be patrolling.

Esquivel said that if U.S. citizens should have any trouble with a member of the Minuteman Project, he or she should call the sheriff’s department or other law enforcement authority.

For his part, Garza said members of the project have sought to talk to him to no avail.

“There will be other officials who will hear them,” Garza said.

While Garza has said members of the Minuteman Project have provided information that led to detentions in the past, he emphasized that his agency in no way cedes its responsibility to protect the border.

Mayor Raul Salinas said that if any of the members of the Minuteman Project violate the law, they will be arrested just as any other citizen.

“The Border Patrol forces are professionals and they have maintained peace and safety,” Salinas said. “I think they (Minuteman members) are simply looking for publicity.”

Salinas said Jim Gilchrist, founder of the civilian group, is just looking for media attention to help sell his new book.

State Rep. Richard Raymond deplored the group’s plan to come to Laredo.

“They don’t have anything to do with this community,” Raymond said. “Here, we reject the racism they practice.”

Like Salinas, Raymond believes the group is just seeking publicity. He noted it’s the Border Patrol that is the real authority on the border.

“They are trained and qualified to protect the border,” Raymond said. “If the federal government or the people believe we need more security, then they need to invest in more agents.”

(Miguel Timoshenkov may be reached at (956) 728-2583 or by e-mail at timo1@lmtonline.com)