A\nnew wave of nationalism has crashed over South Texas, as groups of armed\ncitizens intrude on our lands in the name of keeping their country safe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The FBI in New Mexico arrested\nLarry Mitchel Hopkins, also known as Johnny Horton Jr., on charges of being a\nfelon in possession of firearms and ammunition. Hopkins leads the United\nConstitutional Patriots (UCP), one of several militias that have flocked to the\nborder acting on President Trump\u2019s assertion that the recent surge in Central\nAmerican migrants is an \u201cinvasion.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In a Facebook livestream hosted on\nApril 16 by Debbie Farnsworth, a large group of migrants, including several children,\nwhom the UCP rounded up, can be seen sitting on the ground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is crazy, everybody, totally\ncrazy. I don\u2019t know what to say about this, other than the fact it\u2019s got to\nstop,\u201d a female voice that appears to be Farnsworth narrates. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
A few minutes into the video, Border Patrol officers appear in the video. After establishing order they guide the migrants into the darkness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The UCP maintains that their actions are legal, but Sunland Park Police Chief Javier Guerra states that he had explicitly informed them that they are not.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In response to this event, Governor of New Mexico Michelle Grisham stated that, \u201cMenacing or threatening migrant families and asylum-seekers is absolutely unacceptable and must cease.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These problems are by no means isolated to New Mexico.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
These militias roam the border in the Rio Grande Valley, and citizens in Kingsville and Mission are wary of that fact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Heir to the King Ranch Stephen J. \u201cTio\u201d Kleberg believes that militias could cause a threat of their own. Kleberg said he will allow federal and state law onto his property, but he won\u2019t let private militia beyond the gates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think [private militias] have a governing body,\u201d Kleberg said. \u201cThey are independent and not authorized by anybody. It could lead to individuals taking action without someone in authority supervising. I think that could be dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Joe Metz who lives in Mission also refuses to let these militias on his property.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe Militia just needs to stay where they are. We don\u2019t need fanatical people. We don\u2019t need anybody here with guns. Why do they have guns? I have dealt with illegals for 30 years, and all of them have been scared asking for help,\u201d Metz said. \u201cThe militias need to stay up north where they belong. We have no use for them here. They might shoot someone of hurt someone.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What these militias need to realize is that their presence is doing the exact opposite of what they claim to intend. The people who live here do not feel safer with them around, they are anxious. A bunch of unregulated strangers walking around their property with guns should frighten anyone in their right mind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The issue here is not free speech, gun regulation or even illegal immigration. It\u2019s people who think that this country is theirs, that they are its rightful owners. They want \u201ctheir\u201d country back. There\u2019s only one problem with that.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
THIS COUNTRY ISN\u2019T YOURS. YOU DON\u2019T OWN IT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It isn\u2019t anybody\u2019s rightful property. There is no \u201cREAL\u201d America, and that is what makes this country beautiful. It\u2019s a place where anyone should be able to be themselves without fear of persecution. It\u2019s a place where even orphaned immigrants can make a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Take your nationalism, bigotry and hate, and shove it where the sun don\u2019t shine, because we the people will not stand for it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In New York Harbor, there lies a monument to what we stand for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cGive me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free, the wretched refuse of your teeming shore. Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me, I lift my lamp beside the golden door!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If we don\u2019t stand for that anymore, then what the hell do we stand for?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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