The concept of "In Defense of
Liberty" was originated by Dave Franey in response to the Oklahoma City bombing.
This updated edition has been put together on account of the changes that have
occurred over the years. We have not softened any of the questions; they are
presented in the same manner in which they were asked. We hope this will assist
you in understanding a little more about the militia, and what we represent.
Many thanks to all the dedicated patriots who helped!
MICHIGANMILITIA.COM FOR LETTING ME STEAL ALL THIS GOOD READING
1. What is the militia?
The militia is: all able-bodied citizens who are capable of bearing arms;
the absolute last line of defense against any threat to the State or
Country, whether that threat is natural or man made, foreign or domestic.
Our motivation is patriotism and a sincere desire to defend the
Constitution. Our goal is to encourage all citizens to achieve a high level
of preparedness for a wide variety of possible emergencies.
We support a Constitutionally limited government and defend the American
ideals of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. We are open to all
citizens regardless of race, sex, religion, or political affiliation. Groups
not open to public membership and/or which are organized for any other
purposes are not militias. The militia, as an organization, has no religious
theme; is not racial in nature; nor does it advocate terrorism or violence.
2. Why would you want to join an extremist organization like the militia?
The militia as an organization, represents beliefs in: the inalienable right
to keep and bear arms; the American ideals of Life, Liberty, and the pursuit
of Happiness; freedom and love of country.
If being a patriot has become so unfashionable with the general populace as
to be considered extreme, then so be it. We joined because these qualities,
whether popular or not, are honorable.
3. Is militia activity legal?
Yes, we all have the inalienable rights of self-defense; to keep and bear
arms; freedom of speech; and to peaceably assemble. These cover the majority
of militia activities. The Constitution of the United States prohibits
government, at any level, from interfering or infringing on these rights.
Additionally, the Geneva Convention, Hague Protocols, International Law,
Laws of Land Warfare, as well as Michigan State Law and Federal Law, all
specifically provide for citizen militias, with or without state
4. Is the government going to target me if I join the militia?
If you are asking this question there is obviously something enormously
wrong; it places emphasis on the fact that people are fearful of government
reprisal for engaging in legal activities. Law-abiding American citizens
participating in legal activities are afraid of their government!
Unfortunately, we cannot answer this question for you, we can only
speculate. You will have to ask the government, as we do not speak for them.
However, the fear behind this question should compel you to at least look
into the patriot movement.
5. If you say the militia is legal, why doesn't the media support you?
The undeniable fact that the militia is legal is irrelevant in regard to
media support, whether that support is pro or con; they have absolute
control over the truthfulness, context, completeness and objectivity of
Unfortunately we cannot answer this question, you will have to ask the
media, as we can only speculate.
6. Are you racists?
No, we welcome Americans of all races, cultures, and beliefs; we gain
nothing from turning anyone away, regardless of the hue of their skin. We do
not side ourselves with, advocate, or discriminate against any one
particular race or culture; the militia is as diverse as the general
There are, however, individuals or groups that claim to be militias that say
they are of a superior race fighting the "great race war...to annihilate the
mud people". These individuals or groups are not militias - they are
7. Are you militant?
No, the nature and purpose of a citizen militia is defensive and concerns
itself with the preservation of Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.
We may be regarded as serious and ever vigilant, but we are not militant.
However, there are individuals or groups that claim to be militias that are
determined to be engaged in combat and are aggressively active. These
individuals or groups are not militias – they are militant.
8. Isn’t the militia the National Guard?
No, the citizen militia is the unorganized militia; the National Guard is
the organized militia.
Federal law (10 USC Section 311a, b1-2) clearly distinguishes between the
organized and unorganized militia. It reads in part:
"The classes of the militia are:
The organized militia, which consists of the National Guard and the Naval
The unorganized militia, which consists of the members of the militia who
are not members of the National Guard or the Naval Militia."
Note regarding the National Guard: The National Defense Act of June 3, 1916,
(39 stat.166), provides in part: "that the Army of the United States shall
consist of the regular Army, the volunteer Army, the Officers' Reserve
Corps, the Enlisted Reserve Corps, the National Guard while in service of
the United States, and such other land forces as are now or may hereafter be
authorized by law." We understand from this excerpt that your State’s
National Guard was federalized back in 1916. That means the "organized
militia" is under the control of the federal Government. The Founding
Fathers provided for the citizen militia specifically to safeguard against a
corrupt, centralized government!
"No free man shall ever be debarred the use of arms. The strongest reason
for the people to retain their right to keep and bear arms is as a last
resort to protect themselves against tyranny in government." -Thomas
9. The members of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Coast Guard and the
state and local police are all sworn to protect and uphold the Constitution.
Why do we need militias or even armed citizens?
As Americans, it is "everyone’s" responsibility to uphold and defend the
Constitution; this is a requirement of a free people.
The militia is needed as the absolute last line of defense against any
threat, whether natural or man-made, foreign or domestic; it is everyone’s
responsibility to be prepared to protect and defend state and country.
As to the need for armed citizens, as a human being you have the right to
live for your own sake, and while living, you are responsible for defending
the life of you and yours.
It is irresponsible, unwise, cowardly, and just plain un-American to deny
"If a people expect to be ignorant and free, they expect what never was and
never will be." -
10. Are you terrorists?
No, the militia does not advocate terrorism or violence. Only lunatics,
including those in government, destroy buildings full of men, women, and
children. The militia is a dedicated group of citizen patriots who volunteer
their time and energy to further the cause of freedom. The only thing we
blow to pieces are bowling pins; and if we are ever attacked by them, we
will win! (Bowling pins are commonly used for target practice at militia
11. What good does the militia do? What is your contribution to society?
The militia fulfills a long established American tradition as the ultimate
and final guarantor of freedom; it establishes that as a free people we are
ready, willing and able to defend our lives and country.
We hold informative monthly meetings, update those in attendance on topics
such as: pending legislation, civic activities, current events, safety
bulletins; and we offer training opportunities in the areas of: weapons
safety, CPR, first aid, land navigation, and other useful field techniques.
We strongly encourage everyone to vote and become involved in the
safeguarding of rights within their local communities. We believe that the
educated, responsible citizen is the best possible guarantee of all our
12. Why don't you hold political rallies or try to elect your own
The militia is a citizen based defensive organization. It is not our purpose
to become a political party or promote any candidate for elected office.
While we encourage citizen involvement in the political process, it is
always up to each individual to make decisions regarding their voting and
other political activities. We intentionally separate our group militia
activities from our individual political beliefs, because politics is
controversial in nature and would only serve to damage the cohesive quality
of our unit.
13. Are there women in the militia?
Yes, they are some of the most dedicated patriots you will ever meet. We do
all we can to make the women, and families for that matter, welcome at our
meetings or any activity. Come out and we’ll prove it.
14. Why are your training sessions on the weekends during family time?
Not all training is done on weekends, and most training is family-friendly;
it is a great family activity. We have families that attend weekend field
training with children from babies to teenagers; more are always welcome. We
also meet once a month on a weekday evening at a local restaurant, and
weekly at someone’s home.
Training can include discussions on pending legislation, current events, or
constitutional issues. We encourage all members to bring spouses and
children to our meetings. We strive to keep them as "G" rated as possible.
15. Why do you train like the military?
United States Constitution, 2nd Amendment states, "A well regulated Militia,
being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to
keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed."
We take the words "well regulated" seriously. If we ever need to use the
skills we have learned, we will be able to do so proficiently. The medical
and firearms training our members receive is always important.
There is another, lesser-known reason; in the Michigan Compiled Laws, there
is a provision for the Michigan Defensive Force. In the event of the
Michigan National Guard being called into active federal duty, the citizens
comprising the MDF that have been militia members will be well trained and
16. Why do you need military equipment? (mre’s, gas masks, bayonet lugs,
In order to fulfill our possible legal obligations under the previously
mentioned laws, and out of a sense of duty and responsibility, these items
are necessary for the training we participate in. They aid us in
Most gear is recommended because we train and prepare for a wide range of
emergencies, including natural or man-made disasters, or threats from
foreign or domestic power. Some of our recommended supplies will probably
not be used regularly, but it is always better to be safe than sorry.
17. Why can't you just have your guns, believe what you want, and not be so
"The Constitutions of most of our states (and of the United States) assert
that all power is inherent in the people; that they may exercise it by
themselves; that it is their right and duty to be at all times armed." -
"A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State,
the right of the people to keep and bear arms, shall not be infringed." -
United States Constitution, Second Amendment
"Every person has a right to keep and bear arms for the defense of himself
and the state." - Constitution of the State of Michigan, Article I, Section
In direct contradiction to the above laws, the government has made "owning
our guns and believing what we want" illegal. The above is clear in both
intent and wording; this is not an opinion, it is a fact.
The militia is not radical, we are very concerned however, that our elected
public servants in government are not following the Law as provided in the
Constitution. These and other violations of the Bill of Rights are more
numerous every day; the constitutionally limited Republic of our forefathers
has been stolen and replaced with a representative democracy. Democracy is
tyranny by majority; that is a bad thing.
"There can be no compromise on moral principles. In any compromise between
food and poison, it is only death that can win. In any compromise between
good and evil, it is only evil that can profit." – Ayn Rand in "Atlas
18. Why do you need to have assault weapons?
This question assumes that we have assault weapons; we do not. Assault
weapons are "select-fire" weapons, which means they can fire either
semi-automatic (one trigger pull, one bullet comes out) or fully automatic
(one trigger pull, lots of bullets come out); this select-fire ability is
the defining factor of an assault weapon.
Any weapon that can fire fully automatically has been illegal for private
citizens since 1933. Private citizens cannot own them, only military and law
enforcement are allowed to have them.
The militia uses civilian variations of these weapons, which are the highest
technology available to us, and are semi-automatic. Our "big, black,
scary-looking guns" are not big, nor scary; they are just black. They are
simple to operate, field efficient, easy to clean, accurate, and commonly
available, and are almost universally chambered in a .223 or 7.62 caliber;
which is smaller and less powerful than a 30-30 or 30.06 caliber, which are
common hunting rounds.
19. Why do you wear camouflage?
By wearing our uniforms, we identify ourselves as members of a positive,
patriotic and responsible organization. In addition, the Geneva Convention
and other laws require that all militias must have uniforms with insignia to
designate them as such.
They provide efficient camouflage in wooded terrain, which is tactically
sound. Most members wear fatigues only to meetings or training activities.
Today's fatigues are comfortable, economic, and rugged. Besides, they look
20. Are you cultists or religious extremists?
No to both. We cherish free thought, patriotic ideals, and the inalienable
right of freedom of and from religion. Our members have a variety of
religious and philosophical beliefs. We do not side ourselves with any one
particular religion; on the contrary, we welcome everyone’s beliefs, as it
tends to stimulate intellectual conversation.
There are however, individuals or groups that claim to be militias that say
they are God’s army fighting "demonically controlled people who are being
activated by Satan." These individuals or groups are not militias, they are
21. Are you going to revolt or riot?
No to both. We in the militia would rather see a revolt at the ballot box
than the bullet box.
During the riot in Los Angeles, we saw criminals, not freedom-loving
patriots, looting stores and beating truck drivers.
22. Are you survivalists?
No, the militia is an open, all-inclusive type of organization and we are
not prone to the typical isolationist attitude of most survivalists. In the
event of an emergency or crisis, the militia will stay to assist or defend
our neighbors, communities, and state; whereas a survivalist will run to the
hills and hide.
23. Do you train to kill people or make bombs?
No. We train with weapons to be able to defend ourselves. The only place you
can be trained to kill people is in the Marine Corps and certain government
agencies. We do not train to make any weapon of mass destruction of any
type. Our whole tactical and logistical table of organization is defensive
in nature: to defend ourselves, our families, our communities, and our
24. How is your militia structured?
It isn’t "our" militia, it’s everyone’s. The militia is structured by
county, forming units. These County Units vary in size and usually break
down into smaller teams. These Teams can range in size from a single
individual to a small group, each having their own different training,
objectives, goals, and call-names. These Teams are affiliated under their
County Unit and identify themselves as such. They usually hold meetings and
train together as a group; however, these individuals and Teams act and
speak for themselves.
Each County Unit has an elected County Coordinator who functions as a
communications conduit between the Teams and other Coordinators; this being
the primary function. He or a designee is also responsible for producing a
monthly newsletter, maintaining a web site, organizing training and events,
and chairs meetings. The County Coordinators act and speak for themselves,
not for the Units.
The County Coordinators elect a State Coordinator, who functions in a
similar manner. The State Coordinator acts and speaks for himself, not for
the militia as a whole. There are throughout the state, different militia
groups, many of which are not affiliated. While some of these groups claim
to represent or command all the militia Units within the state, they cannot,
as each individual or Team is autonomous. Given that the militia is "all
able-bodied citizens who are capable of bearing arms", no one particular
individual or group can represent or command the militia as a whole;
excepting in times of invasion or disaster, wherein the Governor would serve
as the State Commander.
25. Who in your command structure decides when you fight or kill?
First, in the context of a militia force fighting against a foreign enemy,
Congress gave itself the power to decide when the militia was pressed into
service. Article 1 Section 8, US Constitution states, "The congress shall
have the power... to provide for calling forth the militia to execute the
laws of the union, suppress insurrections and repel invasions..." We also
know of the possible duty in the Michigan Defensive Force, in which case the
Governor would be Commander in Chief.
Secondly, in the context of militia action against a domestic enemy, the
highest officer in the Michigan Militia does not have the authority to order
any member, of any rank, to come to a monthly meeting, let alone shoot at
someone. That decision is left solely to the individual citizen.
26. What do you do to keep racists, terrorists, zealots, or wackos of any
stripe out of the militia?
We do not welcome anyone who espouses inconsistent, illogical hatred or
violence of any sort. We aim to make anyone who would oppress, by word or
deed, as uncomfortable as possible. Officially, we will "suffer the fool";
say what you will, but don't be surprised to be ridiculed by our members. We
believe the right of free speech extends to allowing you to make a complete
fool of yourself in front of a group of motivated patriots; you will receive
the evil eye from the whole of the membership and will be given a rock under
which to crawl.
27. What would you do if, tomorrow, the President, Governor, Sheriff, ATF,
FBI or Janet Reno decides to outlaw the citizen militia?
They can’t! In order to outlaw the citizen militia, they would have to do
away with the inalienable rights of freedom of speech, to keep and bear
arms, and to peaceably assemble, among others. In addition, none of those
entities have the power to make laws, only Congress and State Legislatures
can pass laws, and they don’t have the authority to deny any inalienable
This question underscores the importance and necessity for the militia as
the final guarantor of freedom and final guard against a corrupt central
government. They can’t outlaw inalienable rights, no matter how hard they
28. Isn't the concept of the militia, as it is provided for in the
Constitution out of date? (It is over 200 years old.)
No, the intent of the framers of the Constitution was that the militia was
to be the primary defensive force for this nation. They wanted normal,
everyday average citizens to be the foundation of the militia. In the
Federalist Papers, they explained that by arming the whole of the citizenry,
the militia would constitute a force superior to any that could be raised by
either a foreign enemy or a domestic tyrant. The modern citizen militia
consists of responsible concerned patriotic individuals.
We do not consider ourselves or our beliefs out of date; being concerned
with protecting your inalienable individual rights is not out of date;
standing up for freedom of speech is not out of date; standing for what the
Founding Fathers fought and died for: Life, Liberty and the pursuit of
Happiness, is not out of date; the need to reduce the interference and cost
of government is not out of date. Despite the passing of over 200 years, the
truth still holds; the price of Freedom is eternal vigilance.
Note regarding the Constitution or its Amendments being considered out of
date: The government doesn’t think it is. The 27th Amendment, concerning the
compensation to Senators and Representatives, was ratified in 1992; 202
years 8 months after it was originally sent to the states. This particular
Amendment was part of the original package of amendments as proposed in
1789, ten of which were ratified in 1791, commonly known as the Bill of
Rights and includes the 2nd Amendment.
29. Is the militia anti-government? If not, why are you so negative about
No, the militia is not anti-government; we fully support the restoration of
the constitutionally limited government that was intended for this nation.
Besides, "We the People" are the government.
Where we do have problems, is with the on-going violations of our
inalienable rights, as should you. The reason we are portrayed as negative
is that it suits the purpose of tainting the legitimacy of our concerns.
This is intentional and politically motivated. No one knows the misleading,
deceitful capacity of the media like the Michigan Militia.
31. Does the militia want retribution for the Waco, and Randy Weaver
Retribution is not the word for it. We want something much more
severe--justice. We want Bill Clinton, Janet Reno and every federal agent
involved to face the thing that they fear most: a trial by jury. That is it.
Simple, fair and straightforward. All we ask is for just a tiny bit of
32. Why should I get involved?
It is the responsibility and duty of every American citizen to get involved.
Your duly elected local, state and federal representatives will day after
day, year after year, continue to pass unconstitutional laws, raise your
taxes beyond the point of serfdom, claim authority over your children, take
your property, jail you for pretended offenses, send our military to fight
foreign wars, protect you from yourself, etc, unless you get involved.
We need your involvement to let those in government know that THEY work for
US, not the other way around. The more people that get involved, the more
America will resemble what the Founding Fathers had in mind when they spoke
of Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.
"They that would give up essential liberty for a little temporary safety
deserve neither liberty nor safety." - Benjamin Franklin
33. What can I do?
Turn off the television. Read the Constitution and Declaration of
Independence. If, perchance you lost your copy of these essential
documents--a must for every household, go to your local bookstore and buy
them; or, we can provide them for you. Read the Constitution, learn the
history, read the Federalist Papers, develop an understanding of how the
country was intended to be and then look at what has become of freedom in
this country. To uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States,
you have to understand it.
Read the Constitution, learn it, know it, assert it. It is the document that
sets the rules that our government MUST follow. If you don’t know the rules,
you cannot expect the government to follow them!
Then contact your local Militia County Coordinator, come to a meeting. There
can be no gain from watching television. There can be no gain from
complaining or grumbling. There can be no gain from hiding your head in the
sand. GET INVOLVED!
"If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better
than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not
your counsel or arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May
your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our
- Samuel Adams, debates of 1776