The mayor of Lexington, Virginia’s call to stand against government abuses earned him permanent bans on many networks throughout America and beyond. But the Virginia Defense Force escorted him back to the ruins of downtown Lexington and secured the town from further attacks. Most of the other towns and counties in the Shenandoah Valley declared their allegiance with Lexington by the end of the day. By the next day, most of western Virginia had rallied to the mayor’s call. By the end of the week, so had most of central Virginia. The majority of the Virginia Defense Force and Virginia National Guard also answered the call, leaving eastern Virginia behind to take up station in the western and central regions of Virginia that no longer followed the rule of Richmond. The message was clear. Over half of Virginia now stood against Richmond, and only force would bring them to heel.