WASHINGTON, D.C.—Thousands of District residents recently poured into the streets to protest President Donald Trump’s decision to expand the military’s presence across the capital.
The move to militarize the city has drawn sharp criticism from local leaders, activists, and everyday Washingtonians who say the deployment undermines democracy and silences Black political leadership in the city. (See The Final Call, Vol. 44 No. 46)
Armored vehicles and heavily armed National Guard troops were spotted near downtown corridors, including along Pennsylvania Avenue and outside Union Station. Checkpoints have also been set up in several predominantly Black neighborhoods, intensifying fears that the military is being used to intimidate residents rather than to protect them.
“As a native Washingtonian, I am outraged beyond measure at President Trump’s brazen takeover of my city’s local police force, flooding our streets with the National Guard, FBI.
And other federal forces—treating the residents of D.C. as if we are enemy combatants in our own home,” Nkechi Taifa, attorney, author, and the executive director of the Reparation Education Project said in an online statement.
“Yes, there is crime in D.C., just as there is crime everywhere, but statistics show our crime rate is actually falling, not rising. This sudden fixation on D.C. is disingenuous and not about safety but more about using our city to serve his own political narrative,” she explained.
“This is yet another reminder of why D.C. Statehood is not just a political issue, but a matter of basic human rights and self-determination. We must not allow this stripping of our local authority and the treatment of our people like pawns in political games.”
Initially, the president ordered 800 National Guard troops, but recently added more troops from three other states. In a statement from Governor Patrick Morrisey.
He explained that under the command of West Virginia Adjutant General Maj. Gen. Jim Seward, the WVNG will deploy troops to the nation’s capital as a show of commitment to public safety and regional cooperation.
Their involvement will include providing mission-essential equipment, specialized training, and approximately 300-400 skilled personnel as directed. The mission will reportedly be funded at the federal level.
As of Final Call presstime, the following states have either deployed or have said they will deploy National Guard personnel: Mississippi, Louisiana, Tennessee, West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio. According to the Associated Press.
“West Virginia said it was deploying 300 to 400 troops, South Carolina pledged 200 and Ohio said it will send 150 in the coming days, deployments that built on top of Trump’s initial order that 800 National Guard troops deploy as part of the federal intervention.”
D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser, who was not consulted about the military buildup, wrote an Aug. 15 letter to city residents. “It has been an unsettling and unprecedented week in our city. Over the course of a week, the surge in federal law enforcement across D.C. has created waves of anxiety.
I was born one year before Home Rule became law, and while our autonomy has been challenged before, our limited self-government has never faced the type of test we are facing right now,” Mayor Bowser wrote.
Protesters have gathered daily outside the White House, Freedom Plaza, and military checkpoints. Demonstrators carried signs reading “This Is Our City,” “Democracy Not Martial Law,” and “Hands Off D.C.”
Civil rights groups argue the takeover reflects a broader pattern of the president targeting cities with Black leadership. Washington, D.C., governed by Mayor Bowser, is the first city to face such a direct military incursion under his new directive. However, the administration has threatened similar measures in Baltimore, Atlanta, and Chicago.
Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League, told NBC News the president’s actions and words were racially polarizing, considering crime rates in these cities are largely declining.
“This is a distraction at a time when these cities deserve credit because crime and violence are down in most American cities right now, and this is trying to distract from that success, and in effect, create a de facto police state in these cities,” said Mr. Morial. “He’s playing the worst game of racially divisive politics, and that’s all it is,” he said.
According to several media outlets, the Department of Justice is reportedly opening an inquiry into whether D.C. police “manipulated” data to make the crime rate appear lower, with the investigation being run out of the office of the U.S. attorney for D.C.
The Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan made a clarion call nearly 10 years ago, during “Justice or Else,” the 20th anniversary of the Million Man March held in Washington, D.C. Minister Farrakhan issued a call to Black communities to work toward making their neighborhoods safe, clean, and decent places to live.
For decades, Min. Farrakhan has continuously warned that the Black community is faced with “a war on two fronts”—attacks by outside forces in our communities, including the U.S. government and police violence, but also the fratricidal violence in our communities.
Minister Farrakhan has also warned that military forces will be sent to cities to deal with violence and civil unrest, but that these tactics will be aimed at Black people, particularly Black youth.
“Don’t you realize that if we stopped killing each other, and found the way of peace among ourselves, that it would be difficult for them to come into our community and kill us—when we have stopped killing ourselves and have found The Knowledge of Self, and are in love with ourselves?”
Minister Farrakhan said in a message he delivered to members of street organizations, September 14, 2015, titled, “A Special Message to Street Organizations: Making Peace and ‘Justice or Else.’”
“Then if you’re in love with yourself, then you’ve got to love your brother who is the same as yourself. Isn’t that what Jesus taught? He taught that The First Law is to ‘Love God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength,’ and The Second is, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’” Minister Farrakhan said.
Washington, D.C.’s clash with the Trump administration over the military presence also highlights a struggle that has defined the city for more than two centuries—the fight for local control and equal representation.
D.C. has over 700,000 residents but no voting members in Congress. Instead, they elect a delegate who can sit on committees but cannot cast a final vote on legislation. Unlike states, D.C. lacks full sovereignty over its laws, courts, or budget—all of which can be overridden by Congress.
While the city has a mayor and city council, their authority is limited. Congress and the president retain final say over many local decisions, including the use of the National Guard. That dependence has long frustrated city leaders, particularly during moments of crisis.
Calls for D.C. statehood have intensified in recent decades, driven by residents who pay federal taxes, serve in the military, and fulfill all the obligations of citizenship without equal rights in return. The slogan “Taxation Without Representation” has been stamped on D.C. license plates since 2000 to underscore the inequity.
Critics of the current military takeover say it underscores the consequences of D.C.’s status. With no governor and no voting voice in Congress, the city had no formal way to prevent the deployment.
“This is exactly what we’ve been warning about,” D.C. resident Angela Thompson told The Final Call. “As long as we’re denied full rights, we remain vulnerable to abuses of power. Today, it’s the military in our neighborhoods. Tomorrow, it’s another city, but also something worse could happen.”