Since August 2025, when then-President Donald Trump deployed thousands of National Guard troops to Washington DC under a presidential executive order declaring a crime emergency, residents have been living with a heavy military presence in their neighborhoods. This week, the White House extended that order through January 2029, coinciding with the end of Trump's presidency.

Every evening at dusk in Lincoln Park, residents participate in a cacerolazo—a ritual of banging pots and pans and chanting “We’ll be back”—as a form of resistance that has historical roots dating back to the 1830s in France and Latin America. Chris Salm, a local resident, said, “As long as they’re going to be here, I’m going to be here. We need to show some resistance to what’s happening to our city.”

Longtime resident Mike Licht described the situation as distressing: “It’s a city under siege. I’ve seen some changes, but this is the most disturbing one.”

District of Columbia officials have pushed for the withdrawal of the troops but face limitations because DC is not a state, and Mayor Muriel Bowser lacks authority to call up the DC National Guard, only to request their presence. Phil Mendelson, DC council chair, criticized the deployment, stating, “The national guard is not contributing to law enforcement. The presence of armed soldiers on our streets is unnecessary, hurts potential visitors to the district, creates the wrong impression about safety, and that’s not helpful.”

Lewis George added, “Governors across the country have been bullied, bribed and misled into misusing their national guard for armed patrols of DC neighborhoods that result in harm to the troops themselves and our community in DC. It’s been almost a year, and we must not normalize this.”

The ongoing deployment has transformed the atmosphere in Washington DC, with residents balancing daily life alongside a persistent military presence and organizing nightly protests to express their concerns.

Sources