Ritual of Support : Army Veteran, Flags in Hands, Stages Daily Rally on Newhall Street Corner

The way Armie Trujillo of Newhall figures it, he held the first rally in the United States supporting troops in the Persian Gulf War.

It wasn’t an impressive affair. Minutes after Cable News Network reported war had broken out, Trujillo grabbed an American flag from the nearby veterans hall, scribbled the sign “May God Help Our Troops in the Middle East” and walked to a street corner in downtown Newhall.

From that humble beginning, a daily ritual has begun. Some afternoons, dozens of compatriots join Trujillo at Lyons and San Fernando roads. Friday, he had one fellow veteran at his side. But Trujillo yields results even if he is the only one in the crowd.

Trujillo, who served three years of active duty in the Army in the 1950s, does not use a megaphone. He shouts no slogans and sings no songs. He simply stands facing traffic with a full-size flag in his left hand and a smaller one in his right. He shakes the small flag in appreciation every time he gets a thumbs up, or a wave or honk, or a “God bless America,” a “Way to go!” or even a “Bring down Saddam.”

“If I wasn’t as old as I am and in the condition I’m in, I would have signed up to go over there in a heartbeat,” said Trujillo, 54, a sign painter who was commander of the American Legion Post 507 from 1988-89. “This is the least I can do.”

The usually quiet intersection takes on a decidedly big-city air during Trujillo’s stints. Ambulances and fire trucks sound sirens and tractor trailers blare diesel horns.

“It puts a little fun into all the dreary things we hear on television all day,” said Pat Hoggatt, 58, who works at a body shop across the street from Trujillo’s daily rallies. “Look at that guy grin,” he said as he pointed at a motorcyclist, horn sounding and his thumb in the air. “It’s just honking the horn, but to me it means something.”

Robert Simone, a Navy veteran who joined Trujillo on the corner Friday, agrees.

“My heart goes to my throat every time they honk,” he said, waving a flag of his own. “I came by here one day and saw Armie standing here. I’ve been joining him ever since every chance I get.”

There are many who pass Trujillo’s flapping flags without acknowledging--and others do not put their thumbs in the air when they pass.

Trujillo simply smiles at his detractors, including the woman who rolled down the window of her car and shouted, “Warmongers!”

“Warmongers?” he said later. “We’re not that. Too many of our friends and relatives have died in wars.”

Weekends, the ranks of demonstrators grow. At 10 this morning, American Legion members and a motorcycle club of Vietnam veterans are scheduled to join Trujillo, and he hopes the sidewalk will be jammed.

“It is a good feeling to be out here. It gives people a release, a good feeling and a little awareness. They always smile--except a few.”