In early August, President Donald Trump deployed federal troops within D.C. The president’s actions sparked a strong reaction from many students and groups, some who feel it’s an attack on the city’s autonomy and was a step back in D.C.’s fight for statehood.
“It’s pretty much un-American to trample on the right to self-governance,” Anna Livingstone, a senior in the School of Public Affairs and president of College Democrats at AU, said. “We were granted the limited home rule that we have through a really long, hard fight — we’re not going to let it go quietly.”
D.C. was first granted a limited sense of self-governance in 1973 under The District of Columbia Home Rule Act, giving citizens the right to elect a mayor and city council. For the first time in over 50 years of the city’s sovereignty, a United States president has assumed the right to take federal control of the District
The U.S. government officially shut down on Oct. 1 after Congress failed to pass a funding bill to avert the shutdown. During the shutdown, active duty military personnel, including currently deployed members of the National Guard, will continue to carry out their assigned duty without pay. Once the government shutdown ends, they will be paid in back pay.
President Trump invoked Section 740 of the District of Columbia Home Rule Act on Aug. 11, establishing federal control of the Metropolitan Police Department. He also deployed the National Guard in an effort to fight crime in the city in accordance with campaign promises to return safety to D.C. by reducing crime, calling the city a “nightmare of murder and crime.”
The act had an expiration date of 30 days of federal control, which ended on Sept. 10. On Sept. 4, it was announced that the National Guard could be stationed in D.C. until Nov. 30, pending Trump’s decision to remove them before then. The D.C. Attorney General issued a lawsuit on Aug. 15 against the Trump administration, claiming that the federal takeover of MPD is unconstitutional.
AU College Democrats posted a statement on Aug. 14 condemning the president’s actions and voicing their solidarity with “DC residents in demanding the right for freedom and self-governance.”
Livingstone said that while Trump’s actions were discouraging, she wasn’t surprised by it. Still, she would not give up the right to home rule without a fight.
Though many college students in D.C. call another state home, she encouraged them to get in contact and call on their home state representatives “to advocate for D.C., for our autonomy, for our funding, for hopefully, our statehood.”
While the District of Columbia Home Rule Act gave D.C. residents the right to elect a mayor and a city council, it also established that D.C. has “limited” home rule and reserved the right for Congress to review all of its legislation before it becomes law, alongside the ability to modify or overturn legislation.
Congress also retains the ability to regulate D.C.’s budget as part of one of the 12 annual federal appropriations bills, and can approve, deny or modify the budget.
Kaden Ouimet, a junior in SPA, noted how harrowing the D.C. environment feels, particularly with the deployment of the Guard.
“What I'm especially surprised by is how normal things seem to go, and I think back to
this point in many other backsliding democracies throughout history,” Ouimet said. “And realizing how normal every day seemed, despite there being increased state security forces everywhere, and how easily everyone would go about their lives.”
Ouimet is involved in civic engagement efforts on and off campus: he participates in the Free DC Project and is the president of Task Force for Democracy.
Ouimet recalled when he found out about the federal takeover, and said he's been “all gas and no brakes” since the election. He was leaving to go on a trip to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, with his sister when he had to unexpectedly return to D.C. to plan how to “protect our campuses and protect home rule.”
Jaice Williamson, a freshman in SPA, spent a few days sightseeing in the District before moving in for his first year of college. While he knew the National Guard was deployed in the city, the first time he saw them was right outside of Union Station with armored vehicles.
Williamson also said that D.C. is a pretty “blue” place, and this is not generally something someone would expect from a sitting president.
“It just seems like a scare tactic,” Williamson said. “And honestly, I wouldn’t expect that from a sitting president, but at the same time, I wouldn’t not expect it from Trump in particular.”
Alex Dodds, co-founder of the Free DC Project, collaborated with the Sunrise Movement at American University to host a student walk-out on Sept. 9. Throughout the day, students from Georgetown University, Howard University and George Washington University also participated in walkouts, with students across D.C. protesting the federalization of the police and mobilization of the National Guard.
“This president has only ever seen our communities through the window of his bulletproof limousine,” Dodds said. “He does not know what our communities are like. And so for him to think that he knows better than any of the people who are actually elected by the people of D.C., well, I would say that it's wrong, but I don't think that this president actually cares about the idea of right and wrong.”
Dodds said that the Free DC Project, along with student organizations, won’t stop gathering and protesting until the president rolls back the federal takeover of the city’s police and the mobilization of the National Guard.
Chelsea Morton, a senior in the School of International Service and co-founder of DC Students United, said her organization works to unite college students from D.C. and reach Congress to protect both U.S. and District citizens.
“We simply just want to alert people to stay vigilant and to stand together,” Morton said. “Because we know that some of the largest movements in history have been with college students standing together and using their education and voice.”
Although many students are standing against the administration’s recent actions in D.C., some are supportive and endorse the actions.
American University College Republicans released a statement on Aug. 15 endorsing President Trump’s actions in D.C.
“As a chapter in our nation's capital, we are firsthand witnesses to the lawlessness that has plagued our city, and our club welcomes and endorses these efforts to restore the rule of law to Washington,” the statement read.
Luke Brown, a junior in SPA and Co-President of AU College Republicans, said he was in full support of the president’s actions to federalize MPD and deploy the Guard to D.C.
Brown said that he thinks D.C. is a dangerous city, and, while he’s been living there, he’s been in several scenarios where he has felt endangered.
Many students have concerns about the heightened police presence, but Brown and the College Republicans want students to reevaluate their stance.
“I don't think we should be scared. I think we should actually be grateful,” Brown said. “I think we just need to know that the police are there to protect us. They're there to try to ward off a lot of these criminals.”
Alec McIntosh, a senior in the School of Communication, said that while he was playing basketball in September, his friend told him that they saw a DoorDash driver being taken away and thrown in a truck.
“They took him away. It was just door dashing,” McIntosh said. “What is the world, what is D.C. coming to?”
In an email to students on Aug. 26, Raymond Ou, the vice president of Student Affairs, told students that while “we are all figuring out evolving federal law enforcement” in D.C., it was important to be aware of the conditions in the city and be safe. Ou also assured students that they will update the AU community “if any further information or actions are necessary.”
The University did not respond to a request for comment on clarification of the partnership between the AU Police Department and MPD.
This article was edited by Gabrielle McNamee, Abigail Hatting and Walker Whalen. Copy editing done by Sabine Kanter-Huchting, Ariana Kavoossi and Emma Brown.
