The Minutemen: Citizen Activists

They Heard the “Call to Action”1

It is my premise that the movement to elect Trump and secure the

border was inspired and driven by the multi-decade long effort of a
small group of what J.F.K had called “citizen-activists”, primarily
Arizonans2 and many Hispanic3, living near our southern border with
Mexico. Since Reagan’s amnesty in the late eighties, these Arizonans
had seen millions of foreigners, illegal aliens, pouring across the
border, sometimes across their front yards, each year.

Many of these citizen-activists remembered Kennedy’s “New Frontier”

speech and the challenge:

“Today we need a nation of minute men; citizens who are not

only prepared to take up arms, but citizens who regard the
preservation of freedom as a basic purpose of their daily life and
who are willing to consciously work and sacrifice for that
freedom1.”

Subsequent to 911 these citizens responded to a fiercely nationalistic

mood, “heard the call” and stood up to protect the nation.

In 2006 one former Vietnam veteran army captain explained what

should have been clear to every American: “Charlie’s under the wire
Roy. We got to protect the perimeter”

In the sixties the call had been for social justice; post 911 the call was
for national survival, and post 911, national survival was clearly at risk.

11 The Hero With a Thousand Faces Joseph Campbell

2 This group would include organizations like American Patrol, the Minutemen,
PAN, You Don’t Speak for Me, and Border Guardians.
3 Colonel Al Rodriquez of “You Don’t Speak For Me”.
 These citizen-activists formed groups, some wearing guns, some not,
but all willing to commit themselves to stand on the border or in the
streets, or walk door-to-door to circulate petitions, all willing to raise
their voices in verbal and symbolic speech to confront what to what
many believed was a direct threat to national survival, and the
furtherance of what some said was an “international conspiracy and
globalist desire for one world government.”

By 2016 Arizona’s commitment to “protect the border” and erect the

“Wall” was the highest in the nation. Trump’s campaign event crowds
were rabid on border issues, and overflowing, which is why he focused
so much time and attention there.

It was Arizona citizen-activists who woke America up to the outrage

happening on our southern border, and inspired millions of frustrated
citizens, from coast to coast and north to south, who by 2016, were
just waiting to elect someone like Trump.

1 JFK Speech January 29, 1961