Tell CA’s leaders to Defend their Constituents from Federal Crackdowns on Peaceful Protest.

ACTION #1 – Email Senators Schiff and Padilla

Dear Senator [_____],

Non-violent, peaceful protesters speaking out against the inhumane and unconstitutional abductions carried out by ICE in Los Angeles have been met with violent repression this week. You’ve seen the videos, including ones of SEIU President David Huerta, a respected community leader, being injured. Now the President is calling for 2000 National Guard troops to “crush” these demonstrations —falsely framing them as riots.

This is not about public safety. This is about punishing dissent. As your constituents, and as Americans, we demand action.

We call on you to:

1. Publicly and unequivocally oppose any federal deployment of National Guard troops into California to suppress protest.
   
2. Demand an immediate investigation into the use of force by law enforcement and ICE in Los Angeles.
   
3. Push for federal legislation that protects the right to protest and limits the power of federal agencies to target communities.
   
4. Hold the President and federal officials accountable for violating civil rights and abusing their power.
   

We will not stand by while our communities are terrorized and our constitutional rights are trampled. We are asking you to meet this moment with the full force of your office—and to make clear that California will not be a testing ground for authoritarian crackdowns. We are all watching how you respond to this moment. History will, too.

ACTION #2 – Email Governor Gavin Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta

Dear Governor Newsom and Attorney General Bonta,

Non-violent, peaceful protesters speaking out against the inhumane and unconstitutional abductions carried out by ICE in Los Angeles have been met with violent repression this week. You’ve seen the videos, including ones of SEIU President David Huerta, a respected community leader, being injured. Now the President is calling for 2000 National Guard troops to “crush” these demonstrations —falsely framing them as riots.

This is not about public safety. This is about punishing dissent. As your constituents, and as Americans, we demand action.

We call on you to:

1. Publicly and unequivocally oppose any attempt to deploy the National Guard to suppress protest in California.
   
2. Refuse all state and local cooperation with ICE or any federal agents targeting peaceful demonstrators.
   
3. Launch a state-level investigation into police and ICE conduct during the Los Angeles protests, including any unlawful use of force or coordination with federal agencies.
   
4. Affirm and enforce California’s sanctuary commitments across all jurisdictions.
   
5. Immediately pursue legal action to challenge the President’s authority to deploy the National Guard in California.
   

This is not about politics. It’s about democracy. It’s about the rule of law. And it’s about California standing up to authoritarianism and saying: Not here. Not on our watch. We urge you to meet this crisis with the full force of your office, courage, and clarity. This is a defining moment for California—and for your leadership. We are all watching how you respond to this moment. History will, too.

(yahoo.com) “The Trump administration announced Saturday that National Guard troops were being sent to Los Angeles — an action Gov. Gavin Newsom said he opposed. President Trump is activating the Guard by using powers that have been invoked only rarely.

Trump said in a memo to the Defense and Homeland Security departments that he was calling the National Guard into federal service under a provision called Title 10 to “temporarily protect ICE and other United States Government personnel who are performing Federal functions.”…

…Erwin Chemerinsky, one of the nation’s leading constitutional law scholars, said “for the federal government to take over the California National Guard, without the request of the governor, to put down protests is truly chilling.”

“It is using the military domestically to stop dissent,” said Chemerinsky, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law. “It certainly sends a message as to how this administration is going to respond to protests. It is very frightening to see this done.”…

…According to the ACLU, Title 10 activation of National Guard troops has historically been rare and Congress has prohibited troops deployed under the law from providing “direct assistance” to civilian law enforcement — under both a separate provision of Title 10 as well as the Posse Comitatus Act.

The Insurrection Act, however, is viewed as an exception to the prohibitions under the Posse Comitatus Act.

In 1958, President Eisenhower invoked the Insurrection Act to deploy troops to Arkansas to enforce the Supreme Court’s decision ending racial segregation in schools, and to defend Black students against a violent mob.

Hina Shamsi, director of the ACLU’s National Security Project, wrote in a recent article that if Trump were to invoke the Insurrection Act “to activate federalized troops for mass deportation — whether at the border or somewhere else in the country — it would be unprecedented, unnecessary, and wrong.”

Chemerinsky said invoking the Insurrection Act and nationalizing a state’s National Guard has been reserved for extreme circumstances in which there are no other alternatives to maintain the peace.

Chemerinsky said he feared that in this case the Trump administration was seeking “to send a message to protesters of the willingness of the federal government to use federal troops to quell protests.”

In 1992, California Gov. Pete Wilson requested that President George H.W. Bush use the National Guard to quell the unrest in Los Angeles after police officers were acquitted in the beating of Rodney King. That was under a different provision of federal law that allows the president to use military force in the United States. That provision applies if a state governor or legislature requests it”