Daniel Bethencourt

Detroit Free Press

Flint may have seen multiple rallies in recent weeks that called attention to the city's water crisis — but few if any were as surprising as a rally held by the Genesee County Volunteer Militia.

On Sunday afternoon, about 30 militia supporters clad in camouflage gear and bearing “Don’t Tread on Me” flags, gathered outside of City Hall to demand accountability amid a national discussion over how the city’s water supply became contaminated.

“We’re here to defend this community," said Matthew Krol, the militia's executive officer, addressing the crowd in a full camouflage outfit with a handgun strapped to his hip. “We’re not going to allow (the government) to step on the people of Flint any longer.”

How Flint's water crisis unfolded

He added: “If it means having to take up arms in defense ... we will do that as well.”

Politically, the militia may not seem to have much in common with past leaders who have called attention to the crisis, including filmmaker Michael Moore or civil rights leader Jesse Jackson. The militia's Facebook page is filled with proclamations of gun rights, and also bears posts favorable to the armed militia that have been occupying an Oregon wildlife refuge. A handful of people in the Flint crowd on Sunday were open-carrying pistols.

Some of those disagreements became obvious when Krol told the group: “This is not a racial issue, unlike some people last week tried to say. It’s a human issue.”

Yet, Dave McKellar said his group was lending their support to a cause that has sparked a national outcry and become the subject of international headlines. Militia members have spent the last week or so delivering non-contaminated water door-to-door with the American Red Cross, and McKellar said that about 50 more militia members would have come to the rally except that he instructed them to help distribute bottled water instead.

Krol echoed Moore’s previous comments when he said local and state leaders knowingly lied to the people. As he spoke, onlookers cried: “They knew!” and “Unacceptable!”

The water supply became contaminated with lead in April 2014 while the city was under the control of a state-appointed emergency manager. The state Department of Environmental Quality admitted that it failed to require corrosion-control chemicals in the water when the city switched its source to the Flint River. Other critics also blamed local officials and federal environmental experts for their roles.

For months, local and state officials failed to answer alarm bells sounded by outraged citizens who complained of discolored and foul-smelling tap water.

As for when the water may ever be safe to drink again, early test results show lead levels in Flint's drinking water appear to be falling — but experts warn it's too early to stop using bottled water and tap filters.

McKellar, a militia liaison who helped organize the rally, told the crowd that “What happened here is a crime.”

But, he added: “The only color that was involved is green.”

Voters' distrust didn't begin with Flint water crisis

Contact Daniel Bethencourt: dbethencourt@freepress.com or 313-223-4531. Follow on Twitter at @_dbethencourt. Free Press Staff Writers John Wisely, Robert Allen and Matthew Dolan contributed to this report.