June 24, 2020 | 1:23pm | Updated June 24, 2020 | 2:31pm
The Trump administration has activated the National Guard to protect monuments during anti-racism protests in Washington, according to a report.
Interior Secretary David Bernhardt requested the deployment this week, Fox News first reported, citing a senior defense official.
The move follows the toppling on Friday of DC’s only statue of a Confederate leader, Albert Pike, near the city’s police headquarters. On Monday, protesters unsuccessfully tried to topple a statue of President Andrew Jackson facing the White House.
President Trump called the assault on Jackson’s statue, which was lassoed with ropes, a “sneak attack” and warned activists they face up to 10 years in prison under the Veterans’ Memorial Preservation Act.
The number of people protesting against racism and police brutality in Washington has diminished since an initial wave of protests in late May and early June against the killing of George Floyd by Minnesota police.
But significant protests continue, including an unsuccessful effort Monday to establish a “Black House Autonomous Zone,” or BHAZ, outside the White House.
During initial protests over Floyd’s death, large demonstrations near the White House gave way to widespread property damage and looting.
It’s not immediately clear how many National Guard members will be deployed, or if the local DC National Guard will be aided by out-of-state guardsmen.
Out-of-state troops would be controversial. DC Mayor Muriel Bowser this month demanded that out-of-state guardsmen invited by Trump leave, and House Democrats will vote Friday on DC statehood to back local autonomy.
The Pentagon, the White House and the DC National Guard did not immediately offer comment.
During the initial wave of protests over Floyd’s death, National Guard members bolstered Secret Service and Park Police ranks near the White House and guarded the Lincoln Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial and other sites on the National Mall.
Any effort to guard federal statues in DC would be daunting. The National Park Service controls traffic circles and parks across Washington, many dedicated to men who owned slaves.
Protesters attempt to pull down the statue of Andrew Jackson in Lafayette Square near the White House.
Drew Angerer/Getty Images
US National Guard
OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty I
Protesters gather at a Lincoln statue in Washington, D.C.
EPA/JIM LO SCALZO
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