Full Description
They live in the suburbs of Tennessee and Indiana. They fought in Vietnam and Desert Storm. They speak about an older, better America, an America that once was, and is no more. And for the past decade, they have come to the U.S. / Mexico border to hunt for illegal immigrants. Who are the Minutemen? Patriots? Racists? Vigilantes? Harel Shapira lived with the Minutemen and patrolled the border with them, seeking neither to condemn nor praise them, but to understand who they are and what they do. Challenging simplistic depictions of these men as right-wing fanatics with loose triggers, Shapira discovers a group of men who long for community and embrace the principles of civic engagement. Yet these desires and convictions have led them to a troubling place. Shapira takes you to that place--a stretch of desert in southern Arizona, where he reveals that what draws these men to the border is not simply racism or anti-immigrant sentiments, but a chance to relive a sense of meaning and purpose rooted in an older life of soldiering. They come to the border not only in search of illegal immigrants, but of lost identities and experiences.
Contents
The Minutemen Chain of Command viii Acknowledgments xi Preface: A Place on the Border xv Introduction: All Quiet on the Southern Front 1 Chapter 1: American Dreams 27 Chapter 2: Camp Vigilance 39 Chapter 3: Gordon and His Guns 73 Chapter 4: Scenes from the Border 97 Chapter 5: Encounters 125 Conclusion: Belonging in America 145 Appendix: A Note on Methodology 153 Notes 163 Works Cited 171 Index 175
