Status Coup is one of the ONLY NATIONAL NEWS OUTLETS who has reported ON THE GROUND from Lochiel, Arizona spotlighting the border wall fight between brave protesters— who encamped for 71 days as part of a tree protest to block Trump’s border wall expansion—and the Trump administration. This ON-THE-GROUND reporting is extremely important…and EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE to fund between a reporter, cameraperson, and travel costs. Please support the LEADING INDEPENDENT OUTLET ON THE GROUND—WITH THE PEOPLE—for as low as $5 bucks a month. You can also DONATE to fund this reporting:
Did you know there was a standoff for 71 days between peaceful land defenders and the Trump regime?
Doubt you did as mainstream corporate media ignored it.
That’s why we sent our reporter Tina-Desiree Berg down to the U.S.-Mexico border in Lochiel, Arizona to speak with some of the brave activists who have been fighting the expansion of President Trump’s fascist border wall…
***WATCH OUR FULL ON THE GROUND VIDEO REPORT ABOVE***
Including by protesting inside a nearly 200-year-old tree cottonwood tree, belovedly called “Grandmother Tree,” to stop Border Patrol from cutting it down and clearing it out in order to continue building the wall. Draped across it was a banner that read “Borders Kill.”
See Photos of the Grandmother tree protesters who protested within it—and protected it—for 71 days.
“They started coming in here with the Backhoe (construction machine) there and taking the trees out that people were trying to protect,” one of the protesters told Status Coup’s Desiree-Berg right in front of Trump’s border wall.
“A brave person put their life in the way and protected one of the last trees that was going to be taken down. And then the next day, some brave individuals put a tree sit (protest) up in that tree.”
That tree protest began on July 29th—on private property for which the land defenders had the owner’s permission to form a protest encampment—and remarkably continued all the way until October 5th…
When Trump’s Border Patrol stormed the camp, illegally trespassing on private property with no warrant, and attacked the peaceful protesters.
“They started arresting people, beating people up, being very violent with everyone…they just rounded everyone up and tore down the tree” a protester told Status Coup.
See photos below of the 200-year-old Grandmother Tree after Border Patrol raided the encampment, assaulted protesters, and cut it down.
During the 71-day protest, some protesters locked themselves to border wall construction equipment—thus blocking and delaying the expansion of Trump’s fascist wall.
“Our comrade managed to lock to this machinery and now construction in this area is halted; once again, camp stands strong—we will not be deterred,” a protester narrated while showing video of a protester chained to a construction machine.
In response, Border Patrol recklessly began driving the construction truck—with the protester still attached to it.
“There is somebody who is locked down to this vehicle and they are moving it. This is incredibly dangerous,” a protester narrated as Border Patrol drove the machine with the protester still attached to it.
Despite Trump’s Border Patrol shutting down the peaceful protest encampment, the protesters are still fighting—and moving to another location near the Border Wall.
“The word is continuing to spread, I think more camps are going to be started all along southern Arizona so that people are able to join together and fight together and stop the Border Wall all over where it’s being constructed…they’re trying to create a certain future, a certain world, one marked by control of borders, surveillance—that is the future we’re looking at. If we don’t fight right now, we’re gonna to be essentially living in a mass surveilled prison. As much as they say this is to keep illegal immigrants out, I don’t think it’s that insane of an idea that this is also to keep us in.”
WATCH/SHARE FULL VIDEO REPORT BELOW
Status Coup is one of the ONLY NATIONAL NEWS OUTLETS who has reported ON THE GROUND from Lochiel, Arizona spotlighting the border wall fight between brave protesters— who encamped for 71 days as part of a tree protest to block Trump’s border wall expansion—and the Trump administration. This ON-THE-GROUND reporting is extremely important…and EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE to fund between a reporter, cameraperson, and travel costs. Please support the LEADING INDEPENDENT OUTLET ON THE GROUND—WITH THE PEOPLE—for as low as $5 bucks a month. You can also DONATE to fund this reporting:
