1
FADE IN
MONTAGE
BILL O’REILLY (ON TV)
(00:00:09)
The immigration bill goes down in the
senate. That is the subject of this
evening's talking points memo.
TV BROADCASTER (ON TV)
(00:00:16)
Critics of Arizona's newly signed
immigration bill say it allows police
to stop anyone on the street based
purely on the person's appearance…
Governor Brewer's response when asked
by a reporter what an illegal
immigrant looks like…
GOVERNOR BREWER (ON TV)
(00:00:26)
II
do not know. I do not know
what an illegal immigrant looks like.
BILL O’REILLY (ON TV)
(00:00:34)
But the sticking point is what to do
with the millions of people who are
on this countryin
this country
illegally.
BILL O’REILLY (V.O.) (CONT'D)
(00:00:38)
The U.S. government will have no idea
who they are and where they are. In
this very dangerous time, that is a
very dangerous thing.
RALLY SPEAKER (V.O.)
(00:00:48)
And we must not be made illegal in
our own homeland. We are not
immigrants that came from another
country to another country. We are…
(MORE)
2
RALLY SPEAKER (CONT’D)
…migrants free to travel the length
and breadth of the Americas because
we belong here.
CARLOS MENCIA (ON TV)
(00:01:04)
What about the people in Mexico that
need help? Oh, yeah, yeah. I call
those people my lazy family that
didn't want to come on the trip.
AUDIENCE (O.S.)
(00:01:10)
LAUGHTER
CARLOS MENCIA (ON TV)
(00:01:12)
Carlos, do you ever help them? Yes.
Every fucking year, I send them a
map.
AUDIENCE (O.S.)
(00:01:17)
LAUGHTER.
CONGRESSMAN DUNCAN HUNTER (ON TV)
(00:01:18)
I wrote the bill that the president
signed in October that takes the San
Diego fence 854 hundred miles across
Arizona, New Mexico and Texas and
it's mandatory.
PRESIDENT VICENTE FOX (ON TV)
(00:01:30)
A land of the free.
SEAN HANNITY (O.S.)
(00:01:32)
But it's not, for the free that live
here, not the free from around the
world…
3
PRESIDENT VICENTE FOX
(00:01:33)
The statue of liberty is welcoming is
welcoming all migrants that came to
this land.
SEAN HANNITY
(00:01:39)
Legally. Legally.
MONTAGE: MUSIC over
Images
of dessert.
(00:02:33) HELICOPTER
flies over U.S. flag
(00:02:20) SUPERIMPOSE TITLE:
BABYLON
BURNING FILMS PRESENTS
MAX
KENNEDY & THE AMERICAN DREAM
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:02:37)
You get an understanding how in all
these holy books where prophets go
off into the desert and somehow the
isolation brings them to a spiritual
revelation… Started a little ways
back, say towards the end of last
summer. It started happening to me out
here because I was so into this
place. You know, I know all the
animals here. It's really bizarre how
you just become part of it. I mean I
came out here a very hard person,
very conservative. Things… from my
youth started coming up. Things about
spirit, about identity with the earth
and looking at people in different
situations. I had to go to Mexico
oddly enough to go to a dentist, if
that ain't funny. I'm outsourcing
myself. It was there I noticed how
much poverty was in the town. And…
(MORE)
4
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.) (CONT’D)
…it's a fairly decent town. That's
when I started noticing the look on
the migrants' face. I mean, they're
as poor as I am per capita. I mean,
you know, they're at the bottom of
their world. Basically, I have to
work almost every day. I'm at the
bottom of my world. I'm a analog man
in a digital world.
(00:03:52) SUPERIMPOSE:
The
MINUTEMAN PROJECT is an activist organization
started in April 2005 by a group of private
individuals to monitor the flow of human trafficking
across the U.S.Mexico
Border.
(00:04:02)
The
name derives from the militiamen who fought in the
American Revolution
(00:04:07)
In
March of 2006 Brooklyn born Max Kennedy joins up.
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:04:20)
Going back into the area we’re going
back into, you pretty much gotta'
make sure you're armed. Regardless of
whether you run into migrants or drug
dealers or anything like that,
there's a lot of rattlesnakes back
there. And, uh, they tend to be none
too friendly, you know? Nobody ever
argues, you know, if you've got a
shotgun with you. Something about
this noise.
(cocks shotgun)
Bothers people. Alright then, we're
on our way to the vast highway that
leads to America.
(00:04:52) SUPERIMPOSE:
5
'MAD MAX' aka Max Kennedy
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.) (CONT'D)
(00:05:03)
I grew up in the sixties. I
participated in a lot of the marches
that were back then. I was a young
kid. I was fifteen years old, ran
away with the hippies. All of this
started restimulating, and it's
unfortunate because, like I say I
know how much they have to deal with
over there. It's nonsense. But, on
the other hand, it's polluting my
society and we're starting to get
like that over there.
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:05:28)
This here is one of the major trails
into the United States, so…
(00:05:34)
You can see how well walked this is.
Like a trail in a park in Central
Park.
(00:05:47)
Okay. You see this can down here.
When they, uh, come in, coyotes use
these things for markers. So, when
he's coming in, he sees the
reflection of the light off this. The
rest of the can is black. He takes
his people past, flips the can
around. When he's making his return,
the moonlight lights up its little
silver bottom and he's in. And, he's
out.
(00:06:13) Youths on DIRT BIKES
SUPERIMPOSE:
SASABE,
Sonora, Mexico
6
MEXICAN MAN (V.O.)
(00:06:28)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
There are four of us. We are from
Oaxaca. We come from the same area.
We are all friends.
LUIS
(00:06:40)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
If La Migra (INS) catches us and
throws us back, well, we'll go back
together, the four of us.
LUIS
(00:06:51)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
We have to look for other ways to
earn money. We have to work outside
the area we live, other places to
find a bit of money. In Mexico we get
paid 100 pesos per day (about 7 US
dollars). But now 100 pesos a day
isn't enough. Food costs about 50
pesos over there. That's what food
costs. For example what we just ate
here costs 50 pesos without sales
tax. What we earn in a day is only
enough to eat twice a day, and then
the money is gone.
(00:07:22)
We go for one, two or three years to
work, make a little money and build
a house in our home town. A small
house where we can live…
(00:07:43)
Those are the ones that think, that
use their heads. Those that don't use
their heads come back the same.
Without any money.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:08:00)
Water bottles… Hmh! This looks good.
Uh, Mexican ID, family photo and a…
(MORE)
7
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…religious one, you know. Normally
what they do if they're going to lose
these ID cards, they melt their
picture because when I give this to
the border patrol, they're gonna'
know you're in this country
illegally, there Melinda. And, uh,
they're going to be looking for you.
I wonder if this is your necklace, as
well. Looks like a picture from
maybe the sixties. You know? Guy with
a moustache, a Lady of Guadalupe,
which just happens to be the treaty
that we've got up there on the
border. What I'll do, I'll take
these, turn these into border patrol
and, uh, she's got any wants or
warrants or anything like that,
they'll know that as well. ‘Cause a
lot of criminals come through here,
too. And, uh, that's one of the
biggest problems we got. Gotta' start
gettin' that stopped.
(00:09:11)
So we're on the main trail right
here, but you can notice that there’s
trails coming in other places. This
right here, this trail that’s
leading up like this, it doesn't look
like much, but they all follow it. It
leads to that white panel off in the
distance, that's where the, uh,
border marker is. It's like an
obelisk, like the, uh Washington
monument. They put their backs
against it and they kind of walk up
the wall and all the trails that
come up out of the canyon, they're
all going to join us up in here
and you're going to see that this is
pretty much, uh, the central figure
in coming into Campo itself. It's
funny that it was overlooked by
earlier Minutemen, but, uh, I'm the…
(MORE)
8
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…kind of guy who doesn't mind getting
his pants dirty, so I out here, you
know?
(00:09:56) Men in TRUCK
LUIS
(00:10:03)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Can you take my bag please…?
(00:10:14)
Can you take more people?
TRUCK DRIVER
(00:10:15)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Yes. Are you going to take this truck
or that one?
LUIS
(00:10:16)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Yeah, half here and half there.
TRUCK DRIVER
(00:10:20)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Yes, but where are your guys?
LUIS
(00:10:22)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Yes, we are here.
TRUCK DRIVER
(00:10:24)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Oh, you are all here?
LUIS
(00:10:26)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Yeah. So what are we waiting for?
9
TRUCK DRIVER
(00:10:27)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
So what are we waiting for?
(00:10:41)
Not this truck, that one.
TRAVELER
(00:11:05)
(in Spanish)
Hasta luego.
LUIS
(00:11:11)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Well if we get through it's good.
If it doesn't go well, and we don't
make it over... well, we'll try
again. If not, then too bad. There's
no other solution. We can only wait
for God. So he can free our path.
And let us pass.
(00:11:38) MUSIC
over TRUCK driving away.
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:11:57)
Obviously there’s, uh, some tracks
up here. Looks like somebody had
walked up behind us, and uh, we’ll
get a look at them in case we have
to turn them in to border patrol…
Ok, so what we got here, you see
this rounded front? That means that
they’re wearing a border bootie.
It’s a piece of fabric they wrap
around their shoe so they don’t
leave an exact print of their shoe.
They usually get rid of it by the
time they get up to the, to 94. And
he’s run back pretty much…
(00:12:42)
And this: yeah, I’m a good guess.
This is like a kid’s play toy, so
maybe they were carrying a kid with…
(MORE)
10
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.) (CONT’D)
…them. And the kid dropped it.
They must’ve been in kind of a panic
because they must’ve seen the
headlights coming back down on them.
Light tends to scare the crap out of
them. But I’d better mark these
footprints of mine so that people
know who was here. So we’ll put an
“M” and M.” The border patrol sees
it they know Minute Men were here.
There ain’t no real sense in calling
it in because we don’t know which
way he headed. He could’ve gone that
way, and that way, or both. So
they’re somewhere around us right
now, but, uh, I don’t have my night
vision with us. Otherwise, we’d uh,
we’d go out and visit them.
(00:13:29) Two trucks stop in the desert.
(00:13:52) MUSIC OVER PEOPLE ON THE DESSERT
(00:14:53) SUPERIMPOSE TITLE
The
Situation
SAN DIEGO DEMONSTRATORS
(00:14:59)
KKK, Go away!
(00:15:01) SUPERIMPOSE
TITLE:
PETE WILSON STATUE PROTEST, HORTON PLAZA, SAN DIEGO
SAN DIEGO DEMONSTRATORS (CONT'D)
(00:15:02)
KKK, go away! KKK, go away!
ANTIDEMONSTRATORS
(O.S.)
(00:15:09)
Deport. Deport. Deport. Deport.
Deport.
11
LATINO MALE DEMONSTRATOR
(00:15:15)
If you want it all white, go back to
Europe. If you want it all white,
go back to Europe. This is our land!
Our land!
CAUCASION MALE DEMONSTRATOR
(00:15:24)
He’s a representative of Mexico! He
represents Mexico! Not the United
States citizen.
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:15:34)
You gotta' beyou
gotta' be kidding
me. You gotta be kidding.
ANTI DEMONSTRATORS
(00:15:38)
God bless Pete.
FEMALE VOICE (O.S.)
(00:15:40)
This is my land!
ANTIDEMONSTRATORS
(00:15:40)
God bless Pete. God bless Pete. God
bless Pete…
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:15:44)
We came here to protest the unveiling
of the statue. To many of us, not
only Latinos, but to many groups, he's
very divisive and we like to call him
the father of hate with what he did
with his hate ads, promoting division,
and doing voiceovers, and scaring
people… some of the tactics that are
used today.
12
FEMALE VOICE 2 (O.S.)
(00:15:59)
Get the fuck out of here, fucking
white supremacist!
POLICE OFFICER
(00:16:01)
Get off the sidewalk. You’re going
to jail.
FEMALE VOICE 2 (O.S.)
(00:16:03)
Get the fuck out of here, fucking
Nazi!
MAN IN WHITE TSHIRT
(00:16:11)
Well, you’re letting these fuckers
walk over here! Fucking stop them
from walking over here!
POLICE OFFICER
(00:16:07)
Get back on the sidewalk.
MAN IN WHITE TSHIRT
(00:16:08)
Keep them fuckers over there!
POLICE escort/push MAN. INDISTINCT CROWD JEERS, PROFANITY.
LATINO MALE DEMONSTRATOR 2
(00:16:10)
Go back to the trailer, Trash. Go
back to the trailer, Trash.
MAN IN WHITE TSHIRT
(00:16:14)
Come on. Do it.
LATINO MALE DEMONSTRATOR 1
(00:16:18)
How you going to stop us from
breeding? That's right, you can't.
You can't stop us. That's why you're
out here.
13
INT. RADIO STATION
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:16:34)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
Estella from El Cajon is calling us.
Estella, good afternoon.
ESTELLA (O.S.)
(00:16:38)
(in Spanish – Subtitles)
Good afternoon, Enrique. I wanted to
talk about justice, because of what
we saw at the border today. I saw
something too drastic and absolutely
terrible.
ENRIQUE MORONES(O.S.)
(00:16:51)
In 1994…
(00:16:52) SUPERIMPOSE:
ENRIQUE
MORONES, Founder 'Border Angels,' Immigration
Activist, Radio Talk Show Host
ENRIQUE MORONES (CONT’D)
(00:16:52)
…the U.S. Government built a wall
between the United States and Mexico
and we were totally opposed to that
wall. So what happened was as of
December ofOctober
of 1994, all of
a sudden people started dying
crossing the dessert. Well, before
it was very rare to have somebody
die. Maybe one or two people a month.
All of a sudden, you started having
one or two people a day dying
crossing the desert. So what happened
was, we said, we’ve got to do
something about this.
(00:17:17)
Okay, I want to thank all of you for
joining us. I'm Enrique Morones…
(MORE)
14
ENRIQUE MORONES (CONT’D)
…And I know that we have some new
people that are out here for the
first time. I'm glad that you're all
out here.
(00:17:26)
So the first thing that we do, like
I saidthere
might be some bugs or
whateverjust
got to flip the
rock off. And just kind of flip it
off quickly because there might be
somethingand
same thing with this
thing. You just flip it off really
quick. And then, uh, we make noise
with the box in case there's anything
scattered around there. This one
looks pretty good. This one has a
whole case and the gallons look good.
It looks like they don't need to be
refurbished. However, let's leave
some extra water ‘cause we have a lot
of water with us. So, maybe somebody
can go and grab a couple of gallons.
Just bring a couple of gallons.
(00:18:15)
The migrants, when they're crossing,
they don't know what this is. They
just see it and then they're attracted
to it. So one of the things that
we've been doingone
of the times
when I was on the Today Show actually
the
guy says, you should get some
solar, little lights, and we do have
them on some; not out here, in other
areas… because they're crossing at
night. That way they see the light at
night and they're attracted to it.
And what we've asked the border
patrol not to do is to drive around
in a circle and drag the tires or
whatever, that way they can see if
there's footprints. Because what
they'll do is, they'll drive around
here, and if they see footprints,
then they know there's somebody…
(MORE)
15
ENRIQUE MORONES (CONT’D)
…around here. We say, don't do that
because we want the migrant that
needs the water to get the water. We
don't want them to die out here. And
they don't want them to die out here
either… So…
MAX KENNEDY
(00:19:42)
As dangerous as this place is, is as
adventurous as it is. So… I'm
fiftythree
years old. When I came
out here, I was fiftytwo
and I'm
going to turn fiftyfour
at the end
of the month.
(00:20:00)
And Voila.
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
(00:20:02)
How’re ya doing, Max?
MAX KENNEDY
(00:20:03)
Yeah! Max…! Alright! Max… What’s
that?
JOHN RYAN
(00:20:05)
John Ryan.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:20:06)
John. Nice to meet you.
GADGET
(00:20:52)
John. He's one of the original Minute
Men over in Naco, Arizona.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:26:54)
Oh, were you? Hey, congratulations.
16
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:11)
How's it going, Brother? Haven't
been up here in about six weeks.
SUPERIMPOSE: ‘Ridge Runner’
RIDGE RUNNER
(00:20:14)
Yeah.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:16)
Livin' in civilization, you know.
RIDGE RUNNER
(00:20:17)
Oh, they're,
uh, they're jumpin'
around. They're, uh, comin', Man.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:22)
Oh, look, he's got a ceramic toilet
in the back. Are you building a new
bathroom for yourself?
RIDGE RUNNER (O.S.)
(00:20:27)
No, I'm strippin' out this trailer.
I’m gonna use it for storage. So we
can, uhtrying
to clean up the act,
you know, put everything in the
trailer, and make it look tidy and
neat.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:36)
Still operating?
(00:20:37) SUPERIMPOSE:
‘
Gadget’
17
GADGET
(00:20:38)
Well, I was showin' John the border.
He hasn't been down here for a year
and a half. And, uh, so, umHere's
a find here last week. Okay? Oh!
Actually, there's two things in it.
Does it work?
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:54)
Oh. A lighter. I need one.
GADGET
(00:20:56)
You got it.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:20:56)
There you go. These guys have been
supplying me free lighters for the
longest time.
GADGET
(00:21:00)
Okay, well I asked Ridge Runner if he
left his toothbrush up here and he
says, no, it's not his toothbrush.
So, uh, I look at the whole picture
here. It's not just the toothbrush.
We have a rock on the left. We have a
rock on the right and we got the
pointer in the center, the
toothbrush. Where is it pointing?
It's pointing from Mexico to the
U.S.A. They can climb up that dirt
mound, go right over the fence, make
a bline
and go right: highway
ninetyfour.
(00:21:26) MUSIC
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:21:36)
These are the kind of people I fight
this fight for because they bought…
(MORE)
18
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.) (CONT’D)
…land down here so that they could
live comfortable, have a nice ranch,
not have to worry about things. Buy
themselves a nice piece of property
and they wind up having to put up
with all of this, get an eightfoot
gate, get all these dogs, live every
night defensively. It's not the way
it should be in America.
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:22:13)
Hey, how's it goin', Joe?
CHERYL (O.S.)
(00:22:14)
How are you?
MAX KENNEDY
(00:22:14)
Cheryl.
CHERYL
(00:22:15)
Good to see ya'.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:20:17)
Yeah? You got a little buddy there.
CHERYL
(00:20:18)
Yeah… They are coming over the fence
by the hundreds every night. I’ve
watched them. Sometimes, I'll sit
out…
(00:22:24) SUPERIMPOSE
Cheryl,
Ranch Owner, U.S.Mexico
border
CHERYL (CONT'D)
…with my binoculars and I can sit and
I can watch 'em come over. And you…
(MORE)
19
CHERYL (CONT’D)
…call border patrol and, you know, I
watch and they run my property. I've
watched them run down the side. One
time they had a small child with them
and they were dragging that child,
trying to get away, trying to hide.
They saw me and I saw them and they
knew it and they werethat
poor
little kid, I felt so sorry for himJOE
(O.S.)
(00:22:45)
They left him.
CHERYL
(00:22:47)
They left one. Yeah. They left one.
JOE (O.S.)
(00:22:49)
They left another one in Jacumba.
Justit
was in the news today.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:22:53)
Was it really?
JOE
(00:22:54)
Twelveyear
old kid. They left him
for eight days.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:22:56)
How many times would you say they,
uh, they come across your property? I
mean, it's got to be almost every
night.
CHERYL
(00:23:00)
It'spretty20
JOE
(00:23:01)
It is almost every night. They come
by here. They're either coming this
road or behind us on this other side.
And when they come through here,
they're movin'. They're still close
to the border. The border is right
there, so they're still runnin'. So
the dogs alert us.
(00:23:16) DOGS BARKING
JOE (CONT'D)
(00:23:18)
And, the dogs do have a job. They
have a service. That's their
service. That's why we have them. We
love our dogs, but they also perform
a job.
VOICE ON SPEAKER (O.S.)
(00:23:34)
…He's stopped and I don't know what's
going on... but I got an eye on him,
so, uh, he could be(
00:31:51) SUPERIMPOSE '
Lil Dog'
VOICE ON SPEAKER (O.S.) (CONT'D)
(00:23:40)
I don't know what he is. Uh, Red's
got him under control now, it would
seem.
LIL DOG
(00:23:47)
Roger. Good copy. You wonder if
there's any correlation between the
red pickup
we saw there this
morning, I'm wonderin' if there's any
connection. Copy.
21
VOICE ON SPEAKER (O.S.)
(00:23:55)
I don't know. He’s on our border
round. Uh… [indistinct]
LIL DOG
(00:24:03)
See, the original concept of the
Minutemen project, man, we're just a
bunch of old fartsThis
gentlemen
right here, he was with us in Arizona
back in ohfive
when it all started.
And, like here it is. Are we still
protecting the border…
COMPANION
(00:24:19)
LAUGHTER
LIL DOG
(00:24:20)
…and supporting the border patrol?
How many of us are there? Five?
COMPANION
(00:24:21)
Yeah… five…
LIL DOG
(00:24:22)
Six? Totals?
COMPANION
(00:24:24)
Yeah…
LIL DOG
(00:24:25)
That's it. Of the original concept.
Everybody else is out beating up
McDonald's parking lots or Home Depot
centers or chasing legislation to
stop employers. No, man, you got it
all wrong. We got to close the
border. We got to seal the border…
(MORE)
22
LIL DOG (CONT’D)
…That will solve the problem.
(00:33:56)
Coming down here and sitting on this
line day this line day in and day
out, day in and day out, night and
day, through the weather: hot, cold.
Stopping the cockroaches from coming
over the wire is protecting the
country.
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:25:02)
In 2005, there was these hate groups
that were popping up called the
Minutemen. They have like a half a
dozen people out there and all they
do is they hang out there at the top
of the hill and they started taking
credit for all these detentions. But,
the thing is, they have been a total
failure out there because when they
really do detain somebodywhen
they
turn somebody over to the border
patrol, like the one we just passed,
the border patrol has to give that
report to the Mexican consulate. They
have to do that. It's the law.
It's an international agreement.
And, they need to know how they were
caught. So, if it was the Minutemen
that did it, like the Minutemen
pointed some people out, that's in
the report. In the more than two
years that the Minutemen have been
out there, there's been less than a
hundred people that have been stopped
because of the Minutemen.
(00:25:54) GUN SHOTS at shooting practice (Max Kennedy)
(00:26:00) SUPERIMPOSE:
La
Gloria Canyon, Minuteman Shooting Range
23
MAX KENNEDY
(00:26:03)
That's gonna' leave a bruise.
(00:26:07) GUN SHOTS
CHERYL
(00:26:14)
We had to earn it. I mean, we have to
earn it every single day of our
lives. We have to get up every
morning. We have to go to work and,
you know, we have to pay our bills
and we have to it andandthat's
just the American dream. And, if you
want the American dream, you have to
go by the laws, I figure.
JOE
(00:26:28)
Spoken like the great granddaughter
of an immigrant.
MAX KENNEDY (O.S.)
(00:26:31)
There you go. Listen, you know…
CHERYL
(00:26:32)
Yes. Yes. My, my—
JOE
(00:26:35)
We're all immigrants.
CHERYL
(00:26:36)
We're all immigrants. And we know
that. We all came from somewhere
else.
JOE
(00:26:37)
But there’s a process. And, there's a
tolerance level where there's only…
(MORE)
24
JOE (CONT’D)
…so much that the United States can
accept without severe economic
consequences.
LIL DOG
(00:26:51)
I'm not afraid. Never have been.
I'm not hiding. That flag has been up
here for a year and a half and I will
standI
will die keeping that flag
up there. Believe me. Thirtyfive
feet from the Mexican border in the
most treacherous part of our border.
I'm here and will stay here.
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:27:07)
The migrants that came from Europe,
they were mistreated when they first
arrived. Benjamin Franklin, himself,
said we gotta stop the Germanization
of the United States. These people
only want to speak German, they’re
gonna have their German flag, their
German customs. Sound familiar? That
was Ben Franklin, who I think most
people here think he’s a hero. Uh,
he's on your hundred dollar bill,
those of you that have hundred dollar
bills.
(00:27:29)
The people that are here are here to
work. They are healthy people. They
are not here to use the system for
the benefits. Remember that
undocumented people don't qualify for
a lot of these benefits. They’re not
here for the benefits. Just like
another argument they use: oh,
you’re aiding and abetting by putting
the water out there. I tell people
nobody’s coming here for the water.
They are coming here to work.
25
ENRIQUE MORONES
(00:27:47)
Remember, that the undocumented
community is contributing billions to
this country. Billions. The surplus.
And those billions contribute to the
health of this country, health
institutions, economic institutions,
education institutions. So it's easy
to say, oh that particular hospital
in that particular location was
closed. It was closed because, yes,
we do need a new healthcare system in
this country. That has nothing to do
with the undocumented community. It's
easy to put the blame where it's
easiest to blame the most vulnerable
people. That's what they're doing
with that argument.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:28:13)
I had a decent job. I had an old
lady. I had a stepdaughter.
I had
a family. I lived in a, in a fairly
nice community. It wasn't rich. It
wasn't upscale. It was just like, you
know, Archie Bunker society, okay.
Then they started showing up. It
wasn't Mexicans at the time. It
was South Americans. And what
happened, I was pull
in straight
and stay out of the sun – what
happened was, my company decided I
could get cheap labor and they got
rid of us.
(00:28:47)
And then, for me to try to find
another job, I couldn't find another
job because here it was, they were just
giving it all away to, you know, this
cheap labor. Well, that broke up my
family. I don't see no liberal
activist standing there back in 1980.
You know, ‘86, sayin' to me, 'Oh, we…
(MORE)
26
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…want to help you secure your family
and hold it together'. No way. They
let my family get shattered. Okay?
And that caused so much damage to
people. Me. I was fuckin' heart
broken when I lost my stepdaughter.
IMe
and my old lady, we had to
have an abortion and that was the end
of things. I mean, I didn't agree on
the abortion. I would have fuckin'
gone out and robbed banks if
necessary.
(00:29:34)
But, you know, women are women. So
you know, they’re control of their
own body, quote, unquote. She went
out the back door and got it aborted—
(00:29:41)
(hand clap)
and that was the end of the
relationship. But, it was all based
on the fact that we were thrown from
low, low middle class into abject
poverty. So, you know, to think that
they're coming here is helping them,
it’s helping them at cost to me, and
guys like me, and women like my ex.
(00:30:03)
Because I had very little to lose
and I’ve lost it. These other
people had plenty to lose. They’ve
lost that. What do these jerks in
the Congress think that this anger
isn't going to boil over into the
streets in the long run. Are they
that frickin' stupid? Do they think
that they've got that much control?
Are they not afraid of patriots
standing up because they've already
got the Patriot Act written?
We'll take your law and we'll rip
it in half. We'll shove it down your
throat. We'll put you in a box
and we'll send you back wherever the…
(MORE)
27
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…fuck you want to go. But get the
fuck out of my fuckin' life.
(00:30:31)
America started off by throwin' the
shackles of bullshit off of us. The
Catholic church. The Royalists. All
of that bullshit. And, now, we're
supposed to worship all that. How the
fuck are you supposed to face that?
All these idiots. And that's what I
think the American public has
basically boiled down to being, the
dumbest people in the world. Because,
they’re so gullible, they'll believe
anything.
(00:30:58)
So it really’s got very little to do
with little Pedro running up here
from, uh, Veracruz. Like I say, I
feel bad for them. I've been thatfar
enough into Mexico that, you
know, I just see a nightmare down
there. Tin shacks, you know. It just
can't be brought here. It can’t help
us. To weaken us. It can’t help us
at all.
(00:31:28) MUSIC
(00:31:51) SUPERIMPOSE:
'
Casa Del Migrante', Rehabilitation Center for
Deportees, Tijuana, Mexico
(00:45:35) CROWD TALKING INDISTINCT OVER MONTAGE
DEPORTEE W/ BROKEN LEG (O.S.)
(00:45:44)
(in English Subtitled)
Well, I got deported about two weeks
ago.
28
DEPORTEE W/ BROKEN LEG (CONT'D)
(00:45:47)
(in English Subtitled)
While I was trying to cross back, I
kind of had an accident. I got chased
by immigration and I fell down and
broke my leg. The doctor said it's at
least two months before I can walk or
take off my cast.
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:32:42)
I'm thirtytwo,
thirtythree
years
old. I'm deported. I'm from Mexico.
This is what we gotta go through.
I mean, it's part of being bad in the
United States, I guess.
BEARDED DEPORTEE
(00:32:53)
This time they told me if I come
back, they want to give me Federal
time. Yeah. So that's why I was
like, I don't want to spend more time
in jail. I'm coming back to my
country. That's better.
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:33:03)
If it wasn't for this house, we
wouldn't know what to do. It's a big
help to everybody.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:33:07)
How long did you stay in the United
States?
GREY HAIRED DEPORTEE
(00:33:10)
Twenty seven years.
29
DEPORTEE W/ BROKEN LEG
(00:33:13)
Oh, around thirty years. Yeah, I've
been there all my life since I was a
little kid.
(00:33:18)
Right now I've got my kids over
there. I'm separated but I still have
three kids over there. I can't go and
see them or whatever until I find out
what's going to happen to me first.
If I get better, I guess I'll be over
there if I can. If not, we'll see
what happens.
(00:33:36) SUPERIMPOSE:
It's
Been a Long Ride Brother
(00:33:38) MUSIC
MAX KENNEDY
(00:34:05)
I'm really happy to leave, actually.
You know what I mean, it’s, uh, I’m
tired.
(00:34:08) SUPERIMPOSE:
Max
departs after 15 months on the border.
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:34:09)
I forget how much this shit wears you
out, you know.
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:34:14)
Kind of sad to leave, but I've done
fifteen months on the border, and
I've done another five months worth
of work on the outside. And I guess
I've tapped myself out. But, uh, I'm
pretty happy for what I did do. And,
if anybody was a moderating force on…
(MORE)
30
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.) (CONT’D)
…that line, it would have been me.
(00:34:37)
And after a while, what I started
noticing up there was that uhthere
was more ideologues up there than
actual patriots. There were so many
people who just had one single point
of view and that's it. They never get
beyond that. I mean, I’d see both
sides.
(00:35:00)
You know, I found there was some
racists up there. I mean, shit, I
wanted to kick the crap out of a few
people. I have a daughter who's a
Puerto Rican. Her mother is a Puerto
Rican Berber from Morocco. And, uh,
you know, I got a pretty great kid out
of it. And, I've heard people mumble
things, you know. White trash. Race
mixer. You know? Wish all Muslims
were dead. You know, that's my
daughter. I wouldn't walk around
saying, you know, well I wish all
Christian kids were dead. I would
never say anything like that about
anybody's situation and I think
that's pretty fucked up.
(00:35:42)
I'm proud of what I did down there.
I'm proud of everything I did down
there because I've helped more
Mexicans than I've harmed. I mean, I
must have thrown hundreds of bottles
of water over the fence to people,
food, medical help. So, it ain't all
like negative… It's been a long ride,
brother.
(00:36:10) SUPERIMPOSE:
'
CASA DEL MIGRANTE' Kitchen
31
VOICES (O.S.)
(00:36:12)
INDISTINCT
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:36:17)
Are you from Los Angeles?
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:36:18)
I was deported from L.A., yes sir.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:36:20)
And, how long were you living there?
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:36:22)
Uh, like twentyeight
years of my
thirtythree
years of my life so I
have no idea what’s Mexico about. So,
here I am struggling to adapt to the
city, you know. It's not easy. It's
hard, but there's a God, and we have
a lot of faith in him. And thanks to
this house, we can move on with our
lives.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:36:42)
And what were you doing in Los
Angeles?
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:36:46)
Um, Working. Selling—I mean… Not
doing good. Yeah. That's why I got
deported. I did two years of, uh,
state penitentiary for, uh, sales of
narcotics. Yes, sir… So they banned
me from the States forever. So, now I
have to adapt to Mexico which I have
noI'm
Mexican, I’m Mexican born,
but, uh, I've never been out here,
for a long time, so… It's not easy…
(MORE)
32
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE (CONT’D)
… Yeah. I got divorced while I was
in prison, like a lot of us do.
Because, I mean it's not easy for them
either. You know, theyShe
moved
on with her life.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:37:24)
The first time you went to the United
States, how did you get there?
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE
(00:37:28)
Uh, with a green card. My mom, I mean,
processed all the legal paperwork
through the INS and everything was
alright, but I never became a U.S.
citizen. That was the whole problem.
If I would have become a U.S.
citizen, I would have never been
here, you know? I never thought I was
going to go through this. Who would
have thought, you know? All my life
in L.A., West L.A., Santa Monica.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:37:44)
So they canceled your Green Card?
PADRES FAN DEPORTEE (O.S.)
(00:52:44)
Oh, they tore it apart. Yeah.
Indefinitely. Forever. I can never
go back to the United States. My
plans are to work here for like four
or five months and gather enough
money to pay somebody to help me get
across. I mean, honest truth, right?
That's, that’s what it's all about.
Yeah.
(00:38:04) SUPERIMPOSE:
To
Live and Die in Las Vegas
33
MAX KENNEDY
(00:38:11)
There it is. The majesty of Las
Vegas.
(00:38:17) MUSIC
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:38:25)
Disneyland for adults. You can get
anything you want in Vegas.
(00:38:40)
But the only thing that really stays
here is your money. But I live here
with your money, so come on down.
The more you gamble, the cheaper my
taxes are. Enjoy yourselves.
(00:39:03)
You know, I used to think they were
just all phoney fucks and… it… it
used to piss me off, but it's not
really. It's every bit of life, this
performance here, you know. Your only
job here is to make the people who
come here and have a good time. I
love it already. I would never leave.
As soon as I get some money, I'll
start styling out with my clothes
again, hang around the Bellagio, meet
all these nice girls that are coming
from everywhere. Man, you can't beat
it.
(00:39:40)
And you know I can do anything I want
here. I want to visit Paris, the
Eiffel Tower is right there. I
want to go back to the Empire State
Building, hey, there it is. I want to
go to Venice, hey, there it is, you
know? It's fantastic.
(00:39:55)
I can see myself going places here.
Cream rises in Las Vegas. Las Vegas
is the place. This is it, brother.
This is friggin' awesome.
34
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:40:07)
You can tell, look at how smiley I
got, you know. I love it here. I
don't know… live and die in Las
Vegas.
(00:40:22) MUSIC
(00:40:27) SUPERIMPOSE:
Playa
de Tijuana, U.S./Mexico border
MEXICAN MAN W/HAT (O.S.)
(00:41:12)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
We all desire to reach the American
Dream.
MEXICAN MAN W/HAT
(00:41:16)
(in Spanish Subtitles)
And this is the price you pay. We
are struggling but they aren't going
to hold us back. Even if they put up
a hundred barriers, we are going to
cross into the U.S. again, and we are
going to cross from everywhere.
That's how Mexicans are, very
stubborn. We are very inventive. But
perhaps to them, we are little mice.
But if they only knew how intelligent
we are. Of all the Latinos, we work
the hardest. They should think it
through. They are the Super Power
now, but at any moment they could
fall and we will have the glory then.
Then they'll want to come to our
place, to our country. We would open
our doors to them and receive them
because we have a different
mentality.
RAMON LOPEZ
(00:42:09)
My name is, uh, Ramon Lopez.
35
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:42:12)
This time, how do you intend to get
across?
RAMON LOPEZ
(00:42:14)
Ain't no other way, but to hit this
fence.
(LAUGHS)
Ain't no other way, but to hit this
fence. I've crossed it here twice, so
it's not, not a big deal, you know
what I mean? I was trying to cross
because I met this girl over here and
I got her pregnant. And, um, she
almost drowned, so I stopped. You
know what I mean, like Last week, and
I just gave up, so I sent her
somewhere else. And they crossed
already, so that's why I got to get
back too, because she's pregnant. I’m
kinda, I want to be there so when
she has the baby. She's five months,
you know?
(00:42:59) SUPERIMPOSE:
Las
Vegas Motor Speedway
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:43:21)
People are recognizing for the first
time in, I gotta' say, at least
thirty years, people are recognizing
my talents. And it's got nothing to
do with Minutemen. It's got to do
with the way I work on my job. And
people are appreciative of a good
hard worker and somebody who's got
brains and picks things up right away
and understands the concepts and
especially in the securities
business, you know. You got, you got
other people's lives basically in
your hands.
36
(00:43:56) GUN STORE SIGN
MAX KENNEDY
(00:43:58)
Yeah, but we have a culture in this
country that is fed up.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:01)
Mhhm.
Yeah.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:02)
Beyond fed up.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:03)
You and I are part of it.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:04)
And being ignored for the last
twentyfive
frickin' years by these
people. Who needs it?
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:09)
We’re not being represented by
anybody.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:11)
That's right.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:12)
Neither side represents my needs, my
wants and what I care about.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:16)
Taxation without representation…
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:18)
Every day.
37
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:19)
…is tyranny.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:20)
(LAUGHTER)
That’s exactly right.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:21)
So, listen, I'm going to let you go
and on the last line... And so go
tyrants. I know we thank you.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:25)
Thank you sir. You keep it up
because there’s more people out there
that are backing you and believe me,
there's plenty of money, so don't
worry about that.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:31)
Thank you, brother.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:32)
That we can get.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:33)
You know it.
GUN SHOP OFFICE GUY
(00:44:34)
Have a good day.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:35)
You too… Oh, man, it's like a toy
store.
(00:44:38) INDISTINCT CHATTER IN GUN SHOP
38
MALE VOICE (O.S.)
(00:44:45)
It’s okay you’re allowed to own that.
He was a Red Sox… You’re good to go…
MAX KENNEDY
(00:44:49)
Wow. I love it here. How about this
sir? Look at them up there. That's
what you want.
(00:45:05)
Man. I tell you, I could just be
happy in here, you know what I mean.
(00:45:10)
You know… but it’s big. What’s this
fortyfour,
something?
GUN SALESMAN (O.S.)
(00:45:15)
That's five hundred.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:45:16)
No shit. I've never even heard of
it.
GUN SALESMAN (O.S.)
(00:45:19)
Nothing I’d wanna to be shot with.
That's for sure.
MAX KENNEDY
(00:45:23)
So talk about the weapon a little…
You know, I don't know much about
this weapon so you guys are gonnaWow.
It's a lot heavier than I
thought it was. Boy. I tell you…
GUN SALESMAN 2
(00:45:33)
This particular one's got the, uh,
Leopold thirtytwo
power scope on it,
it’s got a tenround
magazine
capacity.
39
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:45:40)
What would be the utility of a piece
like that? As a civilian?
GUN SALESMAN 2
(00:45:41)
Yeah, the only application I could
think of that would be… going and…
hunting an elephant?
(00:45:47) SOUND OF THE OCEAN
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:45:50)
Looks like they just crossed over,
right?
RAMON LOPEZ
(00:45:56)
See everybody be... trying to go
however they can. You know what I
mean.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:46:02)
Are they just trying to blend in?
RAMON LOPEZ
(00:46:04)
They've got to wait to see. Just
wait.
(00:46:17)
They've just gotta' jump in the car
and roll out.
RAMON LOPEZ (O.S.) (CONT'D)
(00:46:35)
Oh, Jesus, Man… See they got popped.
They got popped.
(00:46:56) SUPERIMPOSE:
Finally
Got My Wheels
(00:46:59) MUSIC
40
(00:47:07) SUPERIMPOSE:
Three
months later...
INTERVIEWER
(00:47:08)
Max!
MAX KENNEDY
(00:47:10)
Um, finally got my wheels. Four
wheel drive.
INTERVIEWER (O.S.)
(00:47:14)
Max, what happened?
MAX KENNEDY
(00:47:17)
Well, quite frankly, uh, was doing an
experiment. Gravity still works, but
I don't bounce as well. And, uh, kind
of mauled my ankle in a scooter
accident down at the track.
(00:47:41)
A guy swung out in front of me with
one of those industrial golf carts,
and, you know, it's like, it’s like a
big Woodstock for all these drag
racers so they’re all living in like,
you know, this happygolucky
world
and they're not paying attention to
things. And you got three guys in
the front and five kids standing in
the back and I was going to hit them
like a torpedo so I couldn't get out
of the way of hitting them unless I
dumped the bike. And, when I hit
the brakes the bike started going
down anyway, so, in that split
second, I thought, well, I'm going to
feel just as bad if I hit the car.
And, only difference is there's a
bunch of kids that go flying and
so…
41
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
(00:48:18)
…I'm in agony. You know. I mean, from
where I come from, people I knew in
my neighborhood, if they could sit in
bed all day, get paid for it and do
opiates, they'd be smiling their
asses off. But me, I'm nauseous, I'm
aggravated that I can't go nowhere. I
feel like, you know, there's going to
be some definite problems in my, uh,
near future. Just trying to survive
this financially and such, you know
what I mean?
MAX KENNEDY (CONT'D)
(00:48:42)
This is the most painful experience
in my life physically and I snapped
my neck and my back so, that was
pretty painful. Your ankle's are
amazing. The pain levels that you get
out of it are sky high. I can't
believe I've eaten more than half
this bottle in a week. That's like
thirty friggin' Codeine capsules,
more or less. And still, if you eat
something, it just cancels out that
Codeine right away. But, uh, I really
don't like being this doped out. You
know, no pain, no brain.
HOTEL RECEPTIONIST
(00:49:11)
So, you're leaving on the twentyninth
now instead ofMAX
KENNEDY
(00:49:14)
Yeah. Instead of the twentysixth.
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:49:19)
I tend to work so hard, you know, at
getting things done that II…
(MORE)
42
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…kinda ignore things about myself
and, you know. In the midst of
this, I thought I could pull off this
big move in Vegas, but I knew from
the beginning that I didn't have
enough finances to do it. I was gonna
need an awful lot of help, so… Just…
it was a bad turn of luck… That's
all it is. You know what I mean?
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:49:45)
I think that I'm gonna' have to spend
a while recuperating from this. So I
may go down to one of these ranchers
and actually, you know, set myself
back up in a, uh, observer mode, but
I won't be as effective because I
won't be able to climb out in the
brush or anything, but, uhyou
know
I know how the game goes, so I'm
looking to maybe go back and help out
the situation again.
(00:50:22) SUPERIMPOSE:
The
Bite of Life
(01:09:22) MUSIC
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:50:54)
Yeah, it's been a real pain in the
ass. I try to keep it elevated as
much as possible, but, you know what?
It's probably the worst bone in your
body to break.
(00:51:01) SUPERIMPOSE:
CAMPO,
CALIFORNIA, U.S./Mexico border
43
MAX KENNEDY
(00:51:03)
Affects everything you do… I struggle
around in the van. I haven't really
been out of the van much. I basically
got one or two hot meals since I got
here about two weeks ago. I drove
down to town and I went into Campo
diner with somebody.
(00:51:19)
I'm worried about the speedway. I'm
worried about a lot of things, you
know? I left Las Vegas rather rapidly
and I didn't get a lot of things
done. I need to get them done. I
really need to get them done.
(00:51:31)
Uh, my social life is like crap right
now, so. As you can see I have my
specialized sleeping unit. My other
wheels are a wheelchair. And, you
know, luckily I gotta' lot of storage
in the back, so I can keep my food
and stuff separate and out of the
way. It's kinda' funny, you know. I
mean, I got two guns with me and I
haven't even opened the boxes.
(00:52:01)
It's sort of like I get mixed signals
from the speedway, you know, on
things. I think they're afraid I'm
going to sue them and, at the same
time, they're telling their people
not to talk to me, because they may
get sued and someone may mention
something that may not go good for
the company. You know what I mean?
Now I'm thinkin' I gotta' go get a
lawyer. I don't like lawyers. I
don't like lawsuits.
(00:52:19)
What I started off with thinking was
this was a patriotic movement and
that people really cared and were
concerned and were willing to do…
(MORE)
44
MAX KENNEDY (CONT’D)
…what they had to do at this point to
stand up and say, 'Oh, yeah, we're
going to fight back finally'. Well,
you know, then I get down here and I find
out, you know, like, wow, they fight
amongst themselves far more than they
fight back at anything.
(00:52:38)
When you got money, you’re free to
become corrupted. At least down here
I keep finding new stories, new
messages. So, I learned a lesson
about, uh, the handicapped people
through this and how brutal it is to
be there. I wouldn't want to be in
that wheelchair for the rest of my
life, believe me. I would friggin'
never you eave my room. That’d be a
guarantee, know what I mean? But,
uh, so I wouldn't be able to learn
these lessons. I'd be sitting up some
plush couch watching, uh, you know,
who knows, Lou Dobbs…
(lights cigarette)
…thinking everything was hunky dory,
you know. You gotta be in the bite of
life or else you don’t know what’s
really going on. So, I'm happy enough
to be there.
(00:53:24) MUSIC
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.)
(00:53:32)
Fear is the great motivator. They use
it on us all the time. So when it
goes back and it starts coming back
at them, and they have to start living
a fearful existence, maybe they
won't feel so high and mighty when
they get into their Lexus and they're
scared to death to drive down the
Hutchinson River Parkway because
someone might drop a big stone off a…
(MORE)
45
MAX KENNEDY (V.O.) (CONT’D)
… bridge through their windshield.
(00:53:56)
Don't wait for Armaggedon. It ain't
comin' that way. It's going to be a
whole lot different. I know me. I'm
not a quitter. I'm going down in a
much more significant manner. You
know, not like this. I'm not going to
go out with a whimper. As slow as I
go, I know I'm going to bounce back.
(00:54:27) SUPERIMPOSE:
In
June 2011 Alabama passed a sweeping bill to crack down on illegal
immigrants.
Both
supporters and opponents call it the toughest of its kind in
the country.
(00:54:37) SUPERIMPOSE:
The
bill goes well beyond a law Arizona passed in 2010 that caused a
nationwide furor.
(00:54:45) SUPERIMPOSE:
Max
Kennedy left the desert in the spring of 2009.
He
has since broken all ties with the Minute Man movement.
(00:54:53) SUPERIMPOSE:
He
currently lives in Los Angeles County with his
sister and his dog.
(00:55:00) MUSIC
(00:55:03) SUPERIMPOSE:
Max
Kennedy & The American Dream
ROLL TITLES