Protesters flood D.C. to oppose Trump’s National Guard deployment

Washington D.C. downtown recorded a large-scale protest by locals on August 16, 2025, against the President Trump decision to put the National Guard, a state based military force in the US into action across state.

Demonstrators gathered at Dupont Circle before marching down Connecticut Avenue to the National Mall, halting traffic and chanting slogans such as “Trump Must Go Now” and “No ICE! No National Guard!.”

In a viral clip on social media, the march participants tried to physically stop national guard staff physically at Union Station.

The White House responded to the situation: “The deployment was intended to address crime and homelessness, but protesters dismissed the move as an abuse of power.”

Refuse Fascism, an activist group, led the rally, where many attendees wore orange bandannas and carried signs boards.

Metropolitan Police officials monitored the protest rally from a distance while residents from Washington and nearby areas said they are here to defend their community.

In the latest development, West Virginia, South Carolina and Ohio are deploying around 700 guard troops in the country’s capital as support to D.C. administration against protesters.