Wednesday, April 20, 2005
Of Armed Jackasses in Lawn Chairs
Via The New Standard, Gabriel Thompson's account of the Minute Man Project as viewed from the other side of the border ... here's an excerpt:
Early in the day, Palafox encountered a group of men hunkered below a ridge within fifty feet of the border. The men, not knowing that they had been discovered, kept popping their heads up and sneaking glances across the border at the Minutemen.
Palafox approached the migrants with a greeting that he had adopted since the Minutemen arrived: "Are you going to evade the gringos?" He used the Spanish verb toriar to liken migrants to toros, or bullfighters, in the path of an antagonist.
Palafox later recalled that as he was handing out tuna and water to the men, they told him that they had spent the last hour peering over the ridge, wondering why so many Anglos were sitting around with guns.
After explaining the situation, Palafox was able to convince the group to return to Agua Prieta for a meal and shower.
"Last night we put out signs all along this area, telling people not to cross because of the armed vigilantes," Palafox said, pleased that he was able to do his part in keeping the Minutemen bored. In a transnational game of cat-and-mouse, the people from Grupo Beta were doing their best to round up immigrants before they fell within eyesight of the Minutemen, hoping to avoid any confrontations.
For Palafox, it was heartening to see the vigilantes wasting their time. "Let them sit there staring at us," he said. "If you ask me, they are just ignorant racists."
