CARMEN MERCER, PRESIDENT, RESPONDS TO MINUTEMAN SMEAR CAMPAIGN
Minuteman Civil Defense Corps
Carmen Mercer President of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps extends the sympathies for the loss of life in an unfortunate criminal act of violence that led to the deaths of a father and 9-year-old girl during a home invasion in Arivaca, Arizona.
"Our entire country and especially our border region with Mexico has been plagued by senseless violence for decades. It seems the violence can almost always be traced back to illegal drugs and the crimes and corruption it breeds. That is definitely the case in the Arivaca murders."
"This is nothing more than criminals preying on criminals for profit and out of greed, with no regard for human life."
"Since the drug cartels have taken over the Human Slave trade routes over 20,000 people have died on both sides of the border and thousands have perished alone in our southwestern deserts. Many of those left to die in the desert, raped or sold into the sex slave industry are innocent people.
We wish the media would give the same amount of attention to the tens of thousands of senseless murders committed by terrorist drug cartels and human smugglers and connect those who support open borders as accomplices in the deaths and victimization of thousands by smugglers who deal in human misery for profit."
"The media continues to flame the fires of ethnic friction and faux racism through their ridiculous reporting that this is a Minuteman crime - the media is irrational and reckless in perpetrating this despicable propaganda."
"The Arivaca home invasion had nothing to do with the Minutemen, nothing to do with race or illegal immigration, it had to do with psychopathic criminals preying on other criminals - it has to do with the continued crime bred from the smuggling industry created and tacitly enabled by our federal government and greedy business owners. The murders like tens of thousands of other do have a direct correlation to our unsecured borders created by the dereliction of duty of our congress and president, past and present."
"It is unfortunate that a crime like this could not have been prevented; the reality is most criminals cannot be stopped until they commit a crime. Sometimes even when you do the right thing, like contacting the proper authorities as the officers of MCDC did in the case of Shawna Forde, we cannot always predict nor prevent senseless violence - but to use once instance on non-related violence to smear a group or those on a "side of a debate" is the most despicable and dangerous form of fascism known to civilized society."
Chris Simcox, past president and founder of Minuteman Civil Defense adds these facts.
Shawna Forde registered to become a volunteer with MCDC in July of 2006. Never having cleared her probationary period, she was constantly found to be trouble; unbecoming behaviors included, deception, holding unauthorized meetings and promoting herself as a chapter director and spokesperson for the organization without authorization. She even convinced national leaders that she had been "drafted" by volunteers in her area to be the new Washington State Director. After less than 6 frustrating months she was terminated in February, 2007. Concerned with Forde's bizarre behaviors, our Washington and Arizona State leadership teams reported to and worked cooperatively with law enforcement in Washington and Arizona. The other individuals involved in the criminal incident were never registered volunteers of MCDC and had no affiliation with our organization.
Forde formed her own small group and forged an alliance with Jim Gilchrist and the Minuteman Project.
In the spring of 2008, Forde visited our MCDC headquarters camp in California unannounced and was given a "tour" by a caretaker who had no idea who she was. Forde then moved to Arizona and in October was doing a "media tour" near Three Points, Arizona and attempted to forge a new working relationship, we refused and she continued to infiltrate other groups including the Patriots Border Alliance another group of malcontents who were terminated from MCDC and formed their own group.
Border Patrol and Pima County Sheriffs were notified and we shared our concerns about Forde and the PBA and other individuals who were working together in close proximity to MCDC operations. We shared our concerns with law enforcement that both groups were not operating under the same strict standard operating procedures employed by MCDC.
MCDC leadership followed our pro law enforcement pledge and civic duty to report suspicious behaviors of all worrisome individuals to the proper authorities, as was the case with Shawna Forde.
In Defense of our Country, I remain,
Carmen Mercer, President
Minuteman Civil Defense Corps
