Imagine waking up to helicopters buzzing overhead, soldiers marching down your streets—not because of war or disaster, but because your own voice became too powerful.
Recently, former President Trump deployed 2,000 federal troops to California, labeling immigration protests an "insurrection." But ask Black activists and community leaders—it felt painfully familiar: another chapter in America’s long history of force used against its own citizens.
From Little Rock's school steps to the brutal march in Selma, federal troops haven't always stood on the side of justice. Sometimes protecting rights, sometimes silencing our voices.
Join me as we unpack the complicated history of the National Guard in our neighborhoods.
#blackhistory #losangelesprotests
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1967_Detroit_riot
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1992_Los_Angeles_riots
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Rock_Nine
https://www.nps.gov/articles/the-little-rock-nine.htm
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/march-20/lbj-sends-federal-troops-to-alabama-to-protect-a-civil-rights-march
https://www.npr.org/2025/06/09/5428107/what-happened-when-lyndon-johnson-federalized-the-national-guard
https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/california-attorney-general-sues-trump-over-unlawful-national-guard-n1347674