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immigration and customs enforcement
How Should We Respond to Trump’s National Guard Deployment Against the People of LA?
We cannot be silent in the face of Trump’s dictatorial move. Silence is acquiescence. We must be brave in resisting him. But we must not succumb to violence.
Jun 08, 2025
What is our moral responsibility as citizens of the United States when the President of the United States moves to deploy thousands of American soldiers against us?
President Donald Trump signed a memo late yesterday ordering 2,000 members of the National Guard to be deployed in Los Angeles County after federal immigration agents in riot gear squared off with hundreds of protesters for a second consecutive day.
Trump’s action is extreme although technically legal. California Gov. Gavin Newsom did not call in the Guard. Title 10 of the United States Code allows a president to federalize the National Guard units of states to suppress “any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy.” In a presidential memo, Trump said, “To the extent that protests or acts of violence directly inhibit the execution of the laws, they constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States.”
What better Ground Zero for him to try out his police state than Los Angeles—a city teaming with immigrants, with Hollywood celebrities who demonize him, and wealthy moguls who despise him?
Why is he doing it, and why now?
Because Trump can’t stand to be humiliated—as he has been in the last two weeks. By Senate Republicans’ refusal to quickly enact his so-called One Big Beautiful Bill. By Chinese President Xi Jinping’s refusal to back down on trade (and restrict shipments of China’s rare earths, which American industry depends on). By Russian President Vladimir Putin’s refusal to end the war in Ukraine. By the federal courts pushing back against his immigration policy. And, now, by insults and smears from the richest person in the world, who has a larger social media following than does Trump.
So what does Trump do when he’s humiliated? He deflects public attention. Like any bully, he tries to find another way to display his power—especially over people who are powerless, such as immigrants. Especially over people whom he doesn’t consider “his” people, such as Californians.
He has despised California since the 2016 election when the state overwhelmingly voted against him.
And what better Ground Zero for him to try out his police state than Los Angeles—a city teaming with immigrants, with Hollywood celebrities who demonize him, and wealthy moguls who despise him?
He is calling out the National Guard to provoke violence. As Gov. Newsom said, “that move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions.”
Trump wants to escalate tensions. He wants a replay of the violence that occurred in the wake of the George Floyd murder—riots, mayhem, and destruction that allow him to escalate his police state further—imposing curfews, closing down parts of Los Angeles, perhaps seeking to subdue the entire state. And beyond.
Please do not give him this. Don’t fall into his trap.
We cannot be silent in the face of Trump’s dictatorial move. Silence is acquiescence. We must be brave in resisting him. But we must not succumb to violence.
What is needed is peaceful civil disobedience. Americans locking arms to protect those who need protection. Americans sitting in the way of armored cars. Americans singing and chanting in the face of the Americans whom Trump is drafting into his handmade civil war.
Americans who do not attempt to strike back, but who do what many of us did during the Civil Rights and anti-Vietnam War movements—peacefully but unambiguously reject tyranny. To be brave and nonviolent in the face of tyranny, to be strong and restrained, to resist with our hearts filled with anger but not succumb to that anger—is difficult. But Martin Luther King Jr. taught us its importance, and John Lewis taught us how.
A humiliated Trump is the most dangerous Trump. He has manufactured this entire crisis. But he will overreach. He already has. And this overreach will ultimately be his undoing.
As long as we keep our heads.
May we look back on this hellish time and feel proud of what we did.
Be strong. Be safe. Hug your loved ones.
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'A Declaration of War': Trump Sends National Guard to LA Over Anti-ICE Protests
"The Trump administration's baseless deployment of the National Guard is plainly retaliation against California, a stronghold for immigrant communities," one advocate said.
Jun 08, 2025
U.S. President Donald Trump deployed 2,000 National Guard members in response to protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity in Los Angeles over the weekend, as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth threatened to call in the marines.
The protests kicked off on Friday in opposition to ICE raids of retail establishments around Los Angeles. During Friday's protests David Huerta, president of SEIU California and SEIU-United Service Workers West, was injured and then arrested while observing a raid. His arrest sparked further protests, which carried over into Saturday in response to apparent ICE activity in the nearby city of Paramount.
"The Trump administration's baseless deployment of the National Guard is plainly retaliation against California, a stronghold for immigrant communities, and is akin to a declaration of war on all Californians," Victor Leung, chief legal and advocacy officer at the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Foundation of Southern California, said in a statement.
"They yell 'invasion' at the border—but this is the real one: Trump is seizing control of California's National Guard and forcing 2,000 troops into our streets."
Saturday's most dramatic protest occurred outside a Home Depot in Paramount following rumors of an ICE raid there. However, Paramount Mayor Peggy Lemons told the Los Angeles Times that the ICE agents may instead have been staging at a nearby Department of Homeland Security (DHS) office. There were also rumors of an ICE raid on a meatpacking plant that never occurred.
"We don't know what was happening, or what their target was. To think that there would be no heightening of fear and no consequences from the community doesn't sound like good preparation to me," Lemons said. "Above all, there is no communication and things are done on a whim. And that creates chaos and fear."
According to the LA Times, the Home Depot protests began peacefully until officers lobbed flash-bang grenades and pepper balls at the crowd, after which some individuals responded by throwing rocks and other objects at the ICE cars, and one person drove their vehicle toward the ICE agents.
"Many of the protesters did not appear to engage in these tactics," the LA Times reported.
In another incident, Lindsay Toczylowski, the chief executive of Immigrant Defenders Law Center, wrote on social media that ICE agents threw a tear-gas canister at two of the center's female attorneys after they asked the agents if they could see a warrant and observe their activities.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California said that over a dozen people were arrested on Saturday for interfering with the work of immigration agents.
The first member of the Trump administration to mention sending in the National Guard was White House border czar Tom Homan, who told Fox News, "We're gonna bring National Guard in tonight and we're gonna continue doing our job. This is about enforcing the law."
Trump then signed a memo Saturday night calling members of the California National Guard into federal service to protect ICE and other government officials.
"To the extent that protests or acts of violence directly inhibit the execution of the laws, they constitute a form of rebellion against the authority of the Government of the United States," the memo reads in part.
"The only threat to safety today is the masked goon squads that the administration has deployed to terrorize the communities of Los Angeles County."
Instead of using the Insurrection Act, as some had speculated he might, Trump federalized the guard members under the president's Title 10 authority, which allows the president to place the National Guard under federal control given certain conditions, but does not allow those troops to carry out domestic law enforcement activities, which invoking the Insurrection Act would enable.
"On its face, then, the memorandum federalizes 2,000 California National Guard troops for the sole purpose of protecting the relevant DHS personnel against attacks," Georgetown University Law Center professor Steve Vladeck explained in a blog post Saturday. "That's a significant (and, in my view, unnecessary) escalation of events in a context in which no local or state authorities have requested such federal assistance. But by itself, this is not the mass deployment of troops into U.S. cities that had been rumored for some time."
Indeed, several state leaders spoke out against the deployment.
"The federal government is moving to take over the California National Guard and deploy 2,000 soldiers," California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on social media Saturday. "That move is purposefully inflammatory and will only escalate tensions. LA authorities are able to access law enforcement assistance at a moment's notice. We are in close coordination with the city and county, and there is currently no unmet need."
"The Guard has been admirably serving LA throughout recovery," he continued, referring to the devastating wildfires that swept the city early this year. "This is the wrong mission and will erode public trust."
Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Calif.) posted on social media that he "couldn't agree more."
"Using the National Guard this way is a completely inappropriate and misguided mission," Padilla said. "The Trump administration is just sowing more chaos and division in our communities."
Rep. Norma Torres (D-Calif.) added, "They yell 'invasion' at the border—but this is the real one: Trump is seizing control of California's National Guard and forcing 2,000 troops into our streets."
While the National Guard's mission is currently limited, Vladeck argued that there were three reasons to be "deeply concerned" about the development. First, troops could still respond to real or perceived threats with violence, escalating the situation; second, escalation may be the desired outcome from the Trump administration, and used as a pretext to invoke the Insurrection Act after all; and third, this could depress the morale of both National Guard members and the civilians they engage with while degrading the relationships between federal, local, and state authorities.
"There is something deeply pernicious about invoking any of these authorities except in circumstances in which their necessity is a matter of consensus beyond the president's political supporters," Vladeck wrote. "The law may well allow President Trump to do what he did Saturday night. But just because something is legal does not mean that it is wise—for the present or future of our Republic."
Leung of the ACLU criticized both the ICE raids and the decision to deploy the Guard.
"Workers in our garment districts or day laborers seeking work outside of Home Depot do not undermine public safety," Leung said. "They are our fathers and mothers and neighbors going about their day and making ends meet. Rather, the only threat to safety today is the masked goon squads that the administration has deployed to terrorize the communities of Los Angeles County."
He continued: "There is no rational reason to deploy the National Guard on Angelenos, who are rightfully outraged by the federal government's attack on our communities and justly exercising their First Amendment right to protest the violent separation of our families. We intend to file suit and hold this administration accountable and to protect our communities from further attacks."
National political leaders also spoke out Sunday morning.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) wrote on social media that it was "important to remember that Trump isn't trying to heal or keep the peace. He is looking to inflame and divide. His movement doesn't believe in democracy or protest—and if they get a chance to end the rule of law they will take it. None of this is on the level."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) posted that the entire incident was "Trump's authoritarianism in real time."
Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth threatened further escalation Saturday night when he tweeted that "if violence continues, active duty Marines at Camp Pendleton will also be mobilized—they are on high alert."
Newsom responded: "The Secretary of Defense is now threatening to deploy active-duty Marines on American soil against its own citizens. This is deranged behavior."
"This is an abuse of power and what dictators do. It's unnecessary and not needed."
Hegseth then doubled down on the threat Sunday morning, replying on social media that it was "deranged" to allow "your city to burn and law enforcement to be attacked."
"The National Guard, and Marines if need be, stand with ICE," he posted.
Journalist Ryan Grim noted that it was an "ominous development" for the secretary of defense to be commenting on immigration policy or local law enforcement at all.
Rep. Nanette Barragán (D-Calif.) said of Trump and Hegseth's escalations: "This is an abuse of power and what dictators do. It's unnecessary and not needed."
Writing on his Truth Social platform early Sunday, Trump praised the National Guard for their work in Los Angeles. Yet local and state leaders pointed out that the Guard had not yet arrived in the city by the time the post was made.
As of Sunday morning, the National Guard had arrived in downtown Los Angeles and Paramount, ABC 7reported.
In the midst of the uproar over Trump's actions, labor groups continued to decry the ICE raids and call for the release of Huerta.
National Nurses United wrote on Friday: "With these raids, the government is sowing intense fear for personal safety among our immigrant and migrant community. Nurses and other union workers oppose this, and are standing up in solidarity with fellow immigrant workers. We refuse to be silent, and people like David Huerta are bravely putting their own bodies on the line to bear witness to what ICE is doing. It's appalling that ICE injured and detained him while he was exercising his First Amendment rights. We demand his immediate release."
AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler and AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Fred Redmond said in a statement Saturday:
The nearly 15 million working people of the AFL-CIO and our affiliated unions demand the immediate release of California Federation of Labor Unions Vice President and SEIU California and SEIU-USWW President David Huerta. As the Trump administration's mass deportation agenda has unnecessarily targeted our hard-working immigrant brothers and sisters, David was exercising his constitutional rights and conducting legal observation of ICE activity in his community. He was doing what he has always done, and what we do in unions: putting solidarity into practice and defending our fellow workers. In response, ICE agents violently arrested him, physically injuring David in the process, and are continuing to detain him—a violation of David's civil liberties and the freedoms this country holds dear. The labor movement stands with David, and we will continue to demand justice for our union brother until he is released.
The unrest in Los Angeles may continue as Barragán toldCNN on Sunday she had been informed that ICE would be present in LA for a month. She argued that the National Guard deployment would only inflame the conflict.
“We haven't asked for the help. We don't need the help. This is [President Trump] escalating it, causing tensions to rise. It's only going to make things worse in a situation where people are already angry over immigration enforcement."
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Trump Is Dragging America Back to Pre-Civil Rights Norms
Permission to dehumanize comes from the top down. This is what the Trump era continues to teach us, as well as how politically convenient it is.
Jun 07, 2025
Basically, everyone knows that “making America great again” means making America racist again—making racism the cultural norm again, unlocking the cage of political correctness and freeing, you know, regular Americans to strut again in a sense of superiority.
This cultural norm was “stolen” by the civil rights movement. Prior to the changes the movement wrought—I’m old enough to remember those days—polite ladies at church could say, “Oh my, that’s very white of you.” And lynchings were not only normal but quasi-legal, or so it seemed, far more likely to result in postcards than convictions.
To worship racism is to deny full humanity not simply to “them” but to yourself.
Permission to dehumanize comes from the top down. This is what the Trump era continues to teach us, as well as how politically convenient it is. Dehumanizing a particular group of people—turning them into “the enemy” of the moment—is such a useful governing tool. And creating the enemy isn’t limited to waging war.
America, America! Half democracy, half slave-owning autocracy: God bless our founding racism, let’s make America as great as it used to be. Here’s how this is done, asAxios reports:
In a tense meeting last week, top Trump aide Stephen Miller and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem demanded that immigration agents seek to arrest 3,000 people a day... according to two sources familiar with the meeting.
Why it matters: The new target is triple the number of daily arrests that agents were making in the early days of Trump’s term—and suggests the president’s top immigration officials are full-steam ahead in pushing for mass deportations.
No wonder Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) tagents seem like such brutal racists. It’s their job. Perhaps most of them believe in the moral necessity of their work—getting “illegals” out of the country, even if, oh gosh, they’re here legally. But even if they don’t. this is the work they have to do.
It’s not too difficult to scrape past the superficial terms “legal” and “citizenship” to spot the collective dehumanization of brown people. Americans capable of understanding life only in us-vs.-them—me-vs.-you—terms are getting what they long for.
This was exemplified in a recent CNN story about a surge in arrests of fake ICE agents—ordinary American guys harassing, assaulting, and/or pretending to arrest brown people. In one incident, a South Carolina white guy stopped his car on a rural road, blocking the car of brown men behind him. One of the victims recorded the incident on his cellphone.
“You all got caught!” the fake agent blathered. “Where are you from, Mexico? You from Mexico? You’re going back to Mexico!”
He then grabbed the keys from the ignition and started jiggling them in the driver’s face as he mocked his accent. One of the passengers made a call on his cellphone, causing the fake agent to admonish him: “Now don’t be speaking that pig-Latin in my fucking country!” He then slapped the phone out of his hand.
Ah, the enemy! What the incident makes public is not simply the sense of fear the Trumpers are instilling in ordinary Americans, but the fact that they’re returning those ordinary Americans to a sense of... uh, self-worth. We’re better than they are.
But of course this creates fear among everyone in the group declared to be non-American: “the enemy.” As Maribel Hernández Rivera of the American Civil Liberties Union noted to CNN after watching the video:
What we’re seeing here is we have leadership at the top that dehumanizes people who are immigrants and now this is the outcome of that dehumanizing. You end up having a violation of people’s rights, people see and hear this and they feel emboldened to go against immigrants.
Yes, this is part of who we are. Us-vs.-them hatred, fear, and contempt is basic humanity, simplified to its lowest common denominator. It’s so easy to seize a sense of hatred and contempt for an “other”—for someone who seems different. But to worship racism is to deny full humanity not simply to “them” but to yourself. You’re living as half of who you are, locked solely in your certainties—in what you know or think you know—and denying yourself the chance to learn and grow. What someone prone to racism really fears isn’t “the other”—he may well worship having a clearly defined enemy—but, rather, life’s complexity: the unknown.
Removing books from libraries is one example of this—you know, books that make people “uncomfortable,” because they push them beyond their certainties (racist or otherwise). So is the Trump-ICE invasion of universities: arresting and deporting students who make, let us say, politically incorrect statements about Israel’s genocide in Gaza. As author Christine Greer asked, “What is the point of a university if we have homogeneity of thought and silence?”
Interestingly, we’re also witnessing a seemingly opposite sort of educational confrontation, as Trump education secretary Linda McMahon recently defended a New York state high school’s right to maintain an Indigenous American name for its sports teams: “the Chiefs.” The state had imposed a ban on stereotypical mascot names. As a spokesperson for the National Congress of American Indians said, “These depictions are not tributes—they are rooted in racism, cultural appropriation, and intentional ignorance.”
No matter! America has a right to maintain its stereotypes, that is to say, keep them in public view, front and center. Toss in a few hoots while you’re at it.
I believe this much: We’ll continue to evolve beyond this smirking certainty, regardless how difficult it will be to do so and regardless how long it takes.
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