Civil Rights
Critical Rights and Rule-of-Law Concern
Lafayette Square: Militarized Crackdown on Peaceful Protesters for a Photo Opportunity
Amid nationwide protests following the murder of George Floyd, federal law enforcement — including National Guard units, Secret Service, Park Police, and Bureau of Prisons officers — forcibly dispersed a peaceful crowd in Lafayette Square using pepper balls, chemical irritants, rubber bullets, and mounted police. Minutes later, Trump walked through the cleared square to hold a Bible at St. John's Church in a staged photo.