The Martyr

Abstract

In the two years following the 1967 Tierra Amarilla Courthouse Raid, Reies López Tijerina enjoyed a singular moment of triumph in December 1968 when he successfully defended himself against a series of raid charges in state court. Otherwise, he suffered and sought suffering. State and federal law agents surveilled him constantly. Anonymous terrorists shot at and firebombed the headquarters of the Alianza Federal de Pueblos Libres where he lived. Against this backdrop, Tijerina ran for state governor and then conducted a series of increasingly far-fetched citizens’ arrest. In June 1969, he nearly exchanged gunfire with U.S. Forest Service officials during a protest, prompting a judge to send him directly to jail. Convicted on multiple charges, Tijerina stayed behind bars for the next three years.