Over 2,300 Troops have been deployed across major cities, from Washington D.C. to Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Governor Huckabee Sanders Sep. 9 deployed the National Guard to multiple cities across the state, including Fayetteville. This came soon after President Trump deployed the National Guard in Washington, D.C. and in surrounding areas with no prior warning of the deployment.
¨I’m deploying the National Guard to help reestablish law and order and public safety in Washington, D.C.,¨ said President Trump to the Associated Press, in regard to his reasoning for deploying the troops.
The officers began carrying service-issued weaponry beginning Aug. 24, while those in Arkansas are not. Many major cities across the country have received word of the deployment of the National Guard, including New York, Chicago and Boston. Protests have risen across the country, mainly centered in D.C. and Chicago. The National Guard has been deployed from 19 different states, including Arkansas, and ranging across large cities such as New Orleans, Chicago and Los Angeles.
While relating to Chicago specifically, President Trump posted to Truth Social, an application similar to X (Formerly known as Twitter) owned by Trump, “Chicago is about to find out why [it’s] called the Department of WAR.” Forming more protests among Chicago residents, as well as a nationwide movement called “No Kings Day.”
Decreases in crime in both Chicago and Washington, D.C., have raised eyebrows about why the deployment is happening now. The usage of the National Guard in cities such as Los Angeles and D.C. have led to local legislatures suing the Trump administration for the alleged unlawful use of the National Guard.
¨Homicides are down 32%; robberies are down 39%; armed carjackings are down 53%; assaults with a dangerous weapon are down 27% when compared with 2023 levels, with the District reporting the fewest assaults with dangerous weapons and burglaries in over 30 years,” according to the Jan 3 press release from the United States’ Attorneys office.
While homicide rates are down since the deployment of the National Guard, non-fatal shootings and sex abuse rates have risen. With shootings up by 8%, approximately 16 persons, and sex abuse by 9%, approximately 18 persons. Other crimes, such as assault with a dangerous weapon and robbery, have stayed roughly the same.
A student in D.C., Afsheen Nirar, 16, Tuscarora High School, has spoken out about how the presence has affected them, not just through the National Guard, but also through heightened security around the Trump National Golf Club.
“He [Trump] came over the Labor Day weekend…there were police and security sitting on the roads and many places were shut down,” Nirar said.
Many D.C. students have reported seeing vehicles on day-to-day drives and activities, making it difficult to complete activities that used to be an everyday part of life.
