Hostilities Rise: US Activists Cry Foul over Deployment of Marines – "Trained Killers Now Patrolling Our Streets!"
- by Alex K.
- 4 Min Read
- Donald Trump
- USA
- Democracy
- Washington D.C.
- Los Angeles
U.S. Advocate: "Marines were sent; they're tactically trained to take lives" - Marines dispatched - they are battle-hardened, lethal operatives, according to the US activist's statement.
Protests ignited across the nation, inspiring a heated clash between citizens and authorities. The focus of these demonstrations is the deployment of Marines, and federalized National Guard troops to Los Angeles in response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) actions. These contentious encounters erupted in June 2025.
Serving as the main shock troops, around 700 Marines from the 2nd Battalion, 7th Marines, originally stationed in the vicinity of Los Angeles, were mobilized, alongside federalized National Guard troops. The Marines were placed on standby, equipping them with protective gear like shields and batons, while handcuffing powers remained with local law enforcement. Their objective was to safeguard federal employees and facilities, as per an executive order from former President Trump.
However, the movement of active-duty Marines to domestic hotspots did not rely on the Insurrection Act at the time. Instead, the administration employed a unique legal interpretation under 10 U.S.C. § 12406 to federalize the National Guard and invoked inherent constitutional power for active-duty Marines’ mobilization [1][2].
Mr. Trump hinted at a more ominous escalation should the protests persist, openly mulling the possibility of employing the Insurrection Act. Employing fiery rhetoric, he portrayed Los Angeles and the protests as an "insurrection," seemingly justifying such drastic action.
Activists and local leaders, such as California Governor Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, opposed the federal government's intervention, viewing it as an excessive deployment that inflamed tensions rather than quelling them. In Newsom’s own words, "We didn't have a problem until Trump got involved." Demonstrations unfolded in both Washington, D.C., and Los Angeles, with protesters expressing alarm over the potential for aggressive repression and the potential for civilian rights abuse during the immigration protests [1].
In essence, the protests and the concerns expressed by activists revolve around the Trump administration’s escalation of federal military presence to combat immigration-related demonstrations, the legal grey area around active-duty forces’ movements without invoking the Insurrection Act, and the broader fallouts for civil liberties and the intricate balance between federal and local authorities in managing domestic unrest. [1][2]
The European Union, in its commitment to a common foreign and security policy, is closely monitoring the escalating war-and-conflicts and political tensions in the USA, particularly in the context of the immigration protests and the deployment of active-duty Marines in domestic hotspots, raising general-news concerns about civil liberties and the balance of power between federal and local authorities. Activists and political leaders in the USA are expressing alarm over the potential for aggressive repression and the abuses of civilian rights during these immigration protests.
