Calls Deployment of National Guard, Marines ‘Step Towards Authoritarianism’
For more information contact:
Jonathan Kissam, UE Communications Director
(802) 343 1745 | jkissam@ueunion.org
In a statement released yesterday, UE’s national officers condemned the decision of the Trump administration to deploy 4,000 members of the National Guard and 700 Marines to Los Angeles in response to protests against Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids. They call the deployment of troops against civilian protests “an attempt to stifle dissent through military force — something which has no place in a democracy” and note that “the administration is seeking to create physical conflict during immigration raids in order to justify a military response.”
The statement points out that “The recent ICE raids in Los Angeles, Chicago and elsewhere have targeted workplaces, reinforcing the reality that although Trump tries to portray all immigrants as criminals and terrorists, the overwhelming majority are workers. As our union and the rest of the labor movement have learned over the past half-century, the real purpose of immigration enforcement is to maintain a permanent underclass of workers afraid to stand up for their rights — which drags down wages and working conditions for all workers.”
The UE officers conclude with the observation that “Deliberately provoking violence and then using the response to justify massive military crackdowns on civilian protest is one of the ways that democracies slide into authoritarianism,” and call for “widespread nonviolent resistance” if the use of the military against civilian protest continues.
The full statement can be found at https://www.ueunion.org/political-action/2025/military-response-to-immigration-protests-a-step-towards-authoritarianism
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