The Take

Militias and vigilantes on the southern border of the US

Former U.S. Vice President Mike Pence’s motorcade climbs up switchbacks during a tour of the U.S.-Mexico border in Cochise County south of Sierra Vista, Arizona, U.S., June 13, 2022. [Rebecca Noble/Reuters]

During the Trump administration, large numbers of militia members and vigilantes flocked to the southern border of the United States. They pledged to stop undocumented border crossings and started patrols with that in mind. But the residents of the small border town of Arivaca, Arizona had seen these groups before and had no interest in handling them again. Author and journalist Patrick Strickland spent a year reporting there and tells us what he found.

In this episode:

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Patrick Strickland (@P_Strickland_) Author, The Marauders: Conspiracy Theories, Militias and Violence on the US Border

Episode credits:

This episode was produced by Amy Walters with Alexandra Locke, Ruby Zaman, Chloe K Li, Negin Owliaei, Ney Alvarez, and Malika Bilal. Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our engagement producers are Aya Elmileik and Adam Abou-Gad.

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