Marchers sang protest songs and led "Trump must go now" chants as they walked down 16th Street NW in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 6, 2025 during the "We Are All DC" demonstration against the deployment of National Guard troops in the nation's capital. (Photo by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

WASHINGTON — Thousands marched in Washington, D.C., Saturday to protest President Donald Trump’s continued deployment of National Guard troops and the increased federal law enforcement on the streets of the nation’s capital.

The large demonstration, dubbed by organizers as the “We Are All DC” march, trailed down the district’s 16th Street NW toward the White House and came after several days of Trump’s heightened threats to send National Guard troops to Chicago, Boston, Baltimore, New Orleans and other Democratic-led cities.

The district’s Democratic attorney general sued the Trump administration Thursday arguing the ongoing presence of National Guard troops amounts to illegal military occupation.

Guard members from the District of Columbia and seven states had already been deployed in Washington as of this week when Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp announced Friday he would add 300 soldiers and 16 support staff, becoming the eighth state to send troops.

On Friday, Trump added Portland, Oregon, to the list of cities where he wants to deploy the Guard.

Demonstrators carried signs bearing the message “End the Occupation,” “Free DC” and “Get the ICE Out,” in reference to recent U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrests in the district.

Marchers walked down H Street NW in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 6, 2025 during the “We Are All DC” demonstration . (Video by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom)

Dozens of organizations participated in the march, including labor unions, faith-based organizations, immigration advocates, the League of Women Voters D.C. chapter and the D.C. Democratic Party.

Gail Hansen, 71, of Washington, D.C., said she wants to see a decreased ICE presence.

“I believe in freedom, and I think we’ve all gotta let everybody know that what’s happening on our streets is unacceptable,” Hansen told States Newsroom. “ICE needs to go home. The National Guard needs to go home. FBI needs to get out of our streets. We are doing just fine in D.C.” 

Charlotte Stone, 18, of Virginia Beach, Virginia, held a cardboard sign above her head depicting a caricature of Trump with a Hitler mustache and a message that read “Ignoring it is what the Germans did.”

“I’m disgusted with this country, I’m here with my friends, and we’re freshmen at George Washington University, and we’re disgusted. We need to do something about it,” Stone told States Newsroom.

The Washington Metropolitan Police Department released statistics Tuesday claiming overall crime had decreased by 8% in the district over the previous seven days. 

Protesters carry Banksy-style banner depicting a man throwing a sandwich as a nod to former Justice Department employee Sean Dunn, who threw a Subway hoagie at federal agents on Aug. 10 at 14th & U St NW in Washington, D.C. The marchers were part of the “We Are All DC” demonstration on Saturday, Sept. 6, 2025. (Video by Ashley Murray/States Newsroom) 

Trump’s 30-day emergency to federalize law enforcement in D.C. ends Sept. 10. On Tuesday, district Mayor Muriel Bowser announced an agreement with the administration to continue a collaboration between local police and federal law enforcement.

On Saturday morning, Trump posted an AI-generated image of himself with a burning Chicago skyline behind him and a message referring to the 1979 Vietnam War film “Apocalypse Now.” 

He wrote on his platform Truth Social, “‘I love the smell of deportations in the morning…’ Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR,” in reference to his unofficial renaming of the Department of Defense on Friday.

A member of the National Guard stands alongside a military vehicle parked in front of Union Station, near the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C., on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. (Photo by Jane Norman/States Newsroom)

This report has been updated.

WASHINGTON — Six Republican governors are sending more than 1,000 National Guard members to the District of Columbia after President Donald Trump last week activated 800 members from the district’s Guard as part of his federal takeover of the nation’s capital.

The deployment would bring the total number of National Guard troops to roughly 2,060 in the district’s 68 square miles, following the president’s “crime emergency” declaration, even though violent crime in the district is at a 30-year low.

Because the district, home to more than 700,000 residents, is not a state, the president has the sole authority over its National Guard members.

The president has not only activated the National Guard but through the district’s Home Rule Act is using the Metropolitan Police Department’s 3,400-member police force for immigration enforcement.

The more than 1,000 National Guard members sent from the states are expected to arrive in the district Monday and through the coming days and are expected to be armed, according to The Wall Street Journal.

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry will send 150 members; Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine will send 150 military police from his state’s National Guard; Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves will send 200 members; South Carolina Gov. Henry McMaster approved 200 members; Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee will send 160 National Guard members; and West Virginia Gov. Patrick Morrisey will send up to 400 National Guard members.

McMaster and Morrisey added that the federal government would cover the cost of deploying state troops.

Unknown how long Guard will stay

It’s unclear how long National Guard members will remain on duty in the district. National Guard members are usually deployed for natural disasters and kept in reserve. Most have civilian jobs and families that they are pulled away from when they are activated.

The Department of Defense did not respond to States Newsroom’s request for comment.

The president has 23 days left in his emergency declaration and has signaled he wants to extend the emergency longer, as well as request funding from Congress to finance his plans for the district. He’s directed federal law enforcement officers to not only conduct local policing, but to clear out camps of homeless people.

It’s not the first time Republican governors have signaled they will deploy their National Guard members at Trump’s request. Iowa’s Kim Reynolds has stated she will send troops to help with the Trump administration’s mass deportation plans.

The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 generally bars the use of the military for domestic law enforcement purposes.

Vermont Gov. Phil Scott, a Republican, declined a request from the Trump administration to send the state’s National Guard to the district, according to Vermont Public.

DeWine, McMaster and Morrisey said the Pentagon made requests for additional National Guard members.

What other states might see deployments?

States Newsroom reached out to the offices of all 27 Republican governors to ask if the Trump administration had requested National Guard members.

The administration has not made any requests to Georgia, South Dakota and Virginia, according to spokespeople at those offices. Maryland, which borders the district and is led by Democratic Gov. Wes Moore, has not received a request from the Pentagon to send in National Guard members, according to a spokesperson for Moore’s office.

A spokesperson for Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt said there are no current plans for a deployment of National Guard troops from the state.

Laura Strimple, communications director for Republican Gov. Jim Pillen of Nebraska, said in a statement that the governor supported the president’s “initiatives to reduce crime and clean up the streets in our nation’s capital, including placing the Metropolitan Police Department under federal leadership and tasking the District of Columbia National Guard and National Guard troops from several nearby states with security in Washington.”

“At this time, the Nebraska National Guard is not part of this mission,” she added.

A spokesperson for Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis did not directly answer States Newsroom’s question if the state, which is preparing for Category 4 Hurricane Erin, had received a request from the Trump administration to send National Guard members to the district.

“We stand ready to mobilize any resources necessary in response to President Trump’s federal priorities,” the spokesperson said.

The rest of the state offices did not respond to States Newsroom’s requests for comment.