Reposted from The Empire Files
Download the printable poster and leaflet versions of this statement.
Marines like to say about themselves: “There is no better friend, and no worse enemy.” Trump is ordering you to be his best friend, and the worst enemy of the people of the US. And we’ve seen how Trump treats his friends!
There are two possible scenarios with Trump’s mobilization: First: it’s all for show. If so, that show is to scare people–to make civilians so scared of Marines and soldiers that they will not protest his illegal actions. The second (and increasingly likely) scenario: US troops will be ordered to use force against protesters. Nobody should accept these orders as lawful or moral.
You are not alone. Veterans (and service members) everywhere are speaking out and joining anti-Trump protests. You can walk away, you can put down your rifle, and you can speak out. There is a community that will support you. The current moment of Trump’s escalating fascism is one of great historical significance: what you do in this moment will matter, today and for generations to come.
Please read the following statement published by the Center for Protest Law & Litigation issued by constitutional law attorney Nick Place, former Marine Corps Captain and Afghanistan war veteran:
This weekend President Trump took control of and deployed California National Guard troops to Los Angeles to suppress protests and now is mobilizing Marines to Los Angeles. The President has described these protests as a rebellion and a migrant invasion.
We know, and you know, that isn’t true. These protests are a response by Americans in Los Angeles to the government’s intentional provocations, a response to Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s terrorizing abductions of workers, families, and neighbors in their communities and at their jobs. Trump wants to use law enforcement and the military to violently punish people pushing back against his authoritarian agenda and to silence those standing up for human rights and due process.
Whatever forces are deployed, whatever happens on the ground, the Constitution continues to apply, without exception and without question. The First Amendment matters. People have a right to assemble, to speak out, and every single person in Los Angeles and in every city Trump targets has the right to due process of the law—and when masked, unidentifiable men in combat gear kidnap people into vans and armored vehicles and drive them off to undisclosed locations, that right to due process is being violated.
You all saw when Trump took office and immediately started firing senior officers who might offer any pushback to his demands, and put a television host in charge of the Department of Defense. That’s so there are more yes-men up in the chain of command, people who aren’t going to tell the boss when they can’t or shouldn’t do something, people who won’t stop and say no when the Constitution is being violated, and then put you as service members in legal and moral jeopardy by asking you to turn your weapons on civilians in Los Angeles.
To the National Guard soldiers already in LA, to the Marines of 2/7 out in 29 Palms, and to all my other Marines, and to every soldier, sailor, and airmen: your oath is to the Constitution of the United States, not Donald Trump, not Pete Hegseth, not a field-grade officer who needs to impress a boss to get that next staff job he really wants.
There is no tantrum Donald Trump can throw, no threat Pete Hegseth can make, and no action of people in the streets standing up for democracy that nullifies the Constitution of the United States or your oath to it. Do not turn your weapons on civilians on the streets of Los Angeles or any other city for Donald Trump.
Take a moment, remember your oath, and honor your conscience and the Constitution.
Free, confidential 24/7 legal advice for service members, including on rights to refuse orders and to Conscientious Objection, by calling the GI Rights Hotline at 1-877-447-4487.
Nick Place statement issued by The Partnership for Civil Justice Fund and the Center for Protest Law & Litigation.
Download the printable poster and leaflet versions of this statement.
