Letters to the Editor: What Californians are saying about the National Guard's deployment to L.A.

Los Angeles Times

a day ago

To the editor: I've lived in Los Angeles long enough to know that this city weathers fire, quake and fury and still manages to bloom. We grow food in our backyards, paint our pain on walls and find beauty in the struggle. But right now, there's a pressure in the air thicker than smog, a national fear winding through our streets, and its name is Donald Trump ('National Guard arrives in Los Angeles as fallout from immigration raids continues,' June 8).
The helicopters overhead aren't just news choppers anymore. They're echoes of something ancient and dangerous: Fascism rising on American soil. I never thought I'd say this in my lifetime, but we're watching a man try to bring down a republic with the smug grin of a game show host who already knows the final answer.
President Trump, you can stop now. Turn on your TV. Watch what you've done. You will not be remembered as a patriot. You will not be remembered as a liberator. You will be remembered as the worst leader this country has ever produced. A divider. A destroyer.
We write, we paint, we protest and we plant seeds of hope in cracked concrete. But we are exhausted. We need moral leadership, not messianic delusion. What do we tell our children when their leaders praise dictators, vilify the press and mock the weak? That chaos is power? That empathy is weakness?
Mr. Trump: History is not on your side and neither is Los Angeles.
Patsy Pitts, South Los Angeles
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To the editor: It is important to remember that the president who sent the National Guard to Los Angeles because the administration 'has a zero tolerance policy for criminal behavior and violence' is the same president that incited the insurrection on Jan. 6, 2021, declined to take steps to stop the attack on our Capitol or protect members of Congress and, as soon as he took office in 2025, pardoned everyone (more than 1,500 people) indicted or sentenced for the attack. Approximately 140 law enforcement officers were injured with more than $2.7 million in damage to the Capitol.
He is sending a message.
Marcia Scully, Whittier
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To the editor: Gov. Gavin Newsom and Mayor Karen Bass have not told the L.A. disruptors to go home because these politicians fear alienating an important voting bloc.
If Trump does nothing, there will be the creation of no-go zones throughout our country, in which local groups bring parts of major cities to a halt in order to impose an illegal immigration political agenda.
If Trump attempts to restore order, rioters — like those on college campuses — will increase their pressure to demonstrate who has power in this country. It really is necessary to send in the troops. Otherwise, we are headed toward a variant of mob rule.
Julia Lutch, Davis, Calif.
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To the editor: The last time a president called in the National Guard without a request from a governor was in 1965 in Selma, Ala., to protect civil rights demonstrators. This current action by the president is not to protect civil rights or even legal rights.
The troops' wearing of masks indicates a complete lack of training and accountability. In other words, unrestrained gangs with the backing of POTUS.
Joanne Weckbacher, Burbank
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To the editor: Protests by the undocumented and their supporters without permits are futile and stupid. The resulting arrests and detentions are inevitable. Law enforcement is only doing their job and the protesters are breaking the law in trying to stop them.
If the undocumented and their supporters want to make a statement, boycott their workplaces in agriculture, construction, the garment industry or housekeeping in hotels, nationwide. Those industries are fully aware just how dependent they are on those who toil to keep the profits rolling in.
Elliott H. Boone, Long Beach
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To the editor: Now that the Trump administration has launched open warfare against the values of Californians, the most effective response would be resistance that is massive and, above all, passive. When thousands of people in the streets lie down and play dead in a blocking action against whatever action military forces attempt, those forces have no good options to defeat the people. Roughing protesters up will only recruit more to the cause.
This will take discipline on the part of the resistance, but the conscience of the average American will recoil at the sight of peaceful protesters being subjected to violence. Mahatma Gandhi prevailed against the British and won a subcontinent without firing a shot. The Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. helped defeat white supremacy using nonviolence. This is a pivotal moment in history that will be squandered if the resistance resorts to violence. Where the cause is righteous, good trouble demands massive peaceful protest to win.
Alan B. Posner, Santa Barbara
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To the editor: I stand with those of the city who are protesting against Trump's intervention into California's autonomy. I am proud of you and your efforts.
To those who committed acts of vandalism including burning cars, deep shame upon you. To those who remained peaceful, report those who committed crime. It deeply hurts your cause when the weak-brained commit stupidity.
Mat Lakota, Oroville, Calif.