"Be vigilantes," said the Colorado Republican with a chuckle during a public forum Wednesday night. "The federal government has failed you - it's up to you."

Tancredo spoke to a crowd of roughly 240 adults and children, mostly Anglos except for a handful of minorities, at Lakeridge Junior High School. His 25-minute speech started and ended with a standing ovation, and later a man asked Tancredo to run for president.

In similar public appearances in other states, Tancredo has drawn hundreds of protesters, but the streets surrounding this upscale neighborhood were quiet during Wednesday's event.

Known for his outspoken views on immigration, Tancredo said it is his and the public's responsibility to bring attention to important issues, such as the open, dangerous borders and the increasing costs of health care and education for undocumented people.

"We are in a crisis. We have to do something because the stakes are so high," he told the audience. "You don't reward people for breaking the law."

Tancredo said elected officials in Washington, D.C., usually listen only to corporations that line their pockets with money and rely on undocumented workers as cheap labor.

Immigrants have not only sapped public school budgets, but also have tainted class lessons, Tancredo said. It is not necessary to teach students about "cultures that haven't made it" just to be politically correct, he said. He recommended that non-English speaking students should have no more than one year to learn English and after that should be forced into an English-only program.

Tancredo, who was regularly interrupted during his speech by people clapping, told the audience they should be proud to be anti-illegal immigration advocates because many times people with such views fear being labeled as a "racist." He also called the Minuteman Project volunteers "heroes" for protecting the U.S.-Mexico border and standing up for what they believe in.

"God bless every one of them," said Tancredo, wearing a black turtle-neck shirt and gray blazer.

Tancredo's two-day visit to Utah was organized by Utahns for Immigration Reform and Enforcement (UFIRE), an anti-illegal immigration group. Today, he is scheduled to talk at a luncheon in St. George and a public forum in Salt Lake City.

Mike Sizer, UFIRE chairman, said Tancredo paid his own expenses for the trip. Sizer said he hopes the Tancredo's forums draw attention in Utah to the issues of illegal immigration and border problems.

"Utah is not an island," Sizer said. "Whenever you can bring someone here to draw attention to the issue, it's a positive."

After Tancredo's speech, Bryan Horn, a 23-year-old college sophomore, said he agreed with most of the congressman's views and found him inspiring.

"He encourages us citizens to stand up . . . for ourselves," said Horn, chairman of Utah Valley State College's Republican student group. "He has the boldness and tenacity to rally people."

jsanchez@sltrib.com