Reies Lopez Tijerina died this week.
I knew him. He was the central figure in an ongoing battle involving
land grant issues – issues that remain a point of much consternation even
today.
Reies was, first, a firebrand preacher with thousands of
followers. He spent time in federal
court houses, county court houses, and with his followers through Rio Arriba
County, primarily.
While working at KOAT-TV, I covered Reies Tijerina.
June 5, 1967, police scanners blared with reports of an armed
attack on the Rio Arriba County courthouse where a district judge was holding a
hearing.
It took about two seconds to decide that our TV station
needed to get up there.
I loaded up a 16mm sound-on-film camera, made sure the
batteries were charged – and headed out the door for Southwest Air Rangers
where a charter flight was waiting to take me to the county seat in Tierra
Amarilla.
Prior to my departure I’d called around to find a ride and
hooked up with the Justice of the Peace in Chama. He agreed to meet the plane when we landed at
Chama Land and Cattle Company’s private strip just south of Chama. He did that and we headed for the courthouse
about 10 miles away.
Reies and his followers had taken some prisoners, including
a UPI reporter – Larry Calloway. I don’t
recall the exact timeframe, but I’m guessing we were flying over the same area at
the same time that Tijerina and his band were covering in search of cover.
When I arrived at the courthouse there were signs of
violence – and things were still in a tizzy.
I interviewed the sheriff, Benny Naranjo, about what happened. Then I unloaded the camera, gave it to the
pilot, and told him to take it back to Albuquerque. It was back in the city in time for the 6 o’clock
Big 7 News.
I don’t recall the next hour or two, nor do I remember how I
ended up at the search headquarters, a National Forest Service ranger station
in Canjilon – but I got there and continued to shoot film in hopes that someone
from Albuquerque would soon arrive and we’d have some method of transportation.
The story was made bigger by the fact that Governor Dave
Cargo was out of state and the Lieutenant Governor, E. Lee Francis, called out
the National Guard, commanded by Major General John Pershing Jolly.
The times were interesting, not only in New Mexico – but around
the world. It was the same time as the
famous 6-day war of the Middle East.
In the TV news world, we cared what we talked about and reported on in those days. It was serious business. And, it was a time when going live from a remote site like
Canjilon was impossibile. So we shot
film and sent it back, hoping for the best.
Network
correspondents arrived. Tom Schell from ABC News Los Angeles arrived, looking for "Baby Huey" to fill him in on the latest - that was me. A fellow New Mexican, Ned Judge, showed up in a little
helicopter that could barely take off in the high altitude.
The story went on for days, weeks, months and years. I can’t imagine what would happen if such an
incident was to happen today.
Anderson Cooper would be going live, looking for a talking
head to tell him what was happening. In
those days back then, that could have been me!
And here's Larry Calloway
If you’re interested in knowing more… here are a couple other sites…
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