As many of you know, I am not afraid to get involved when I see or hear about something I believe in. Today was no different. As I did my job I decided to take a little lunch break. Since I was in the area of 75th Ave. and McDowell Rd. I thought what better place than the local Home Depot. I just can't stay away from the hot dog stand they have there some days.

Well to my disappointment, the hot dog vendor was not there when I went by, but 250-300 Immigration Protesters were. I had heard earlier on the radio, both Air America and KFYI, that the protest would be over around noon. I had also heard that the Home Depot store manager (Rob, sorry I missed your last name on the radio) had asked a representative of the demonstration to leave the property after the protest leader had tried in vain to give him a letter having something to do with the protest. As I pulled up to the entrance at 12:30 I was amazed to find the protest still in full swing. At this point I decided that a first hand report to my VofA family might be in order.

I met with a gentlemen who would only speak to me on the condition of anonymity. (I have always wanted to have the chance to say that) He told me that the news media had erroneously reported that the manager did not take the letter prepared for him by one of the Protest Leaders. The manager did in fact have the letter. My source went on to tell me that the reason the Manager had asked the man to leave the property was not because of the protest but because the Home Depot organization has a policy against solicitation on Home Depot properties.

I thought I should vet this a little so I asked if they allowed Girl Scouts to sell cookies there and was told they did not. In addition I asked about Bell Ringers for the Salvation Army or the local Fire Fighters Union, again I was told no. A little more fact checking when I got back to my home office and I found the following  supporting evidence at AZCentral.com;

Home Depot spokeswoman Kathryn Gallagher said she didn't know whether managers at the central Phoenix store had asked immigrants to leave the property, but the company has a long-standing nonsolicitation policy.
"It's not directly aimed at anyone specifically or any specific organization," Gallagher said.

I must now believe that it is true. Official spokespeople have a way of backing up their statements with policy manuals.

The scene at the Home Depot was intense. As I said 250-300 people walking around in front of the Home Depot yelling at passing cars in Spanish (which was lost on me) and a lot of American and Arizona flags being waved. I saw young (like 3 or 4 years old) all the way up to the elderly protesting. Many looked like they had just arrived in America, a few were well dressed as though they had taken some time off from a high end job to attend the event. But what blew my mind was the number of Phoenix Police cruisers and motor cycle cops in the area. This had to cost the taxpayers some serious doe.

I called ICE to ask if they had any plans to disrupt the protest or take into custody what I am sure was a large number of illegal aliens (because that is what they are, ILLEGAL) and they said no. They are not in the business of starting race wars I was told.

I thought for a moment about the rights I had and whether it would be a good idea to join the protesters with a sign that read "Illegal Aliens Go Home". As appealing as the thought was, my wife likes me alive. I then saw an incident that gave me further pause. As a motorist drove by, obviously irritated with either the delay at the intersection because of the protest or just a basic disgust with the protest itself, a protester threw a soda at his passenger side window. The driver did not stop to report the vandalism and instead drove off, as I too might have done considering the number of people holding the opposing view that were involved. I did make mention of it to an officer nearby but without evidence or a victim complaining it was just a passing conversation worthy of little more than a shaking head. 

Had the soda hit the windshield and blurred the driver's vision he could have hit a pedestrian. Could you imagine what would have happened if an incident like that had happened on Home Depot land. A law suit as frivolous as the McDonald's hot coffee law suit could have been filed naming Home Depot as a defendant. The Store Manager did the right thing by enforcing the companies directives and having the protest leader removed from the property.

I hear a lot of talking heads on T.V. and the radio speak of the "Backlash" these demonstrations will produce but see little in the way of counter-protests being planned. I heard that in L.A. a church leader of a predominately Black Church has something planned for the 21st of May. I also hear it is not planned to be supportive of the Illegal Immigration situation but very much in opposition to it. Have we come that far? Are we so comfortable that we are sitting this one out and letting our Black American Family members fight this fight. Civil rights have been afforded them and they understand how precious they are. Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the people of influence are too afraid to stand up and be counted on this issue. All because both the Democrats and the Republicans are afraid to alienate a potential future voter. We should stand arm in arm, shoulder to shoulder with all Legal American Citizens and defend our nation from an Illegal Alien Invasion.

Be it by birth or by Immigration, if you are a legal citizen of these United States you have a right and a duty to stand up and be heard. Our freedom of speech is being used against us by people from a foreign land who understand better the freedom we have than we do.

To Manager Rob and his crew at the Home Depot on 75th Ave. and McDowell Rd., I salute you. You did not bend to the pressures of a politically correct media, a hostile organizations like MECHA or La Raza  or to the pressures that your own Congressmen and Senators seem crippled by. You are Average Americans and the true keepers of the flame of freedom. We should all be so lucky as to have people like you as neighbors.

But what would I know, I'm just an Average American.