Pentagon confirms deployment of Marines to Los Angeles starting this Friday
Major General Scott Sherman revealed that some 200 Marines will enter as a form of support for the city.
U.S. military guarding federal buildings.
The U.S. Marines sent to Los Angeles by President Donald Trump will begin operations Friday, the Pentagon said. The military corps will step up security support for the Californian city following protests over immigration raids.
"Two companies moved into the Wilshire Federal Building in Los Angeles last night. They will assume full operations at noon today at that location," Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman told reporters, adding that 200 Marines would be there.
This Los Angeles property houses the FBI, federal law enforcement and former combatant services.
Following the outbreak of protests over anti-immigration raids in Los Angeles, - which have spread to other cities - President Donald Trump, sent thousands of National Guard troops and hundreds of Marines, a move that has been at odds with the judgment of California's Democratic governor.
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What is the National Guard?
Trained to provide rapid response in emergency situations, the National Guard is a reserve military force within the U.S. Armed Forces, meaning that most of its members serve part-time while performing civilian jobs or doing other activities.
As a response force, the National Guard can be mobilized quickly to deal with emergency situations on U.S. soil, usually natural disasters. It can also be activated for deployment to combat zones, especially in the event of war.
Unlike other branches of the U.S. military, the National Guard performs duties at both the state and federal levels, and is organized into groupings based in all 50 U.S. states, as well as the District of Columbia, which houses the capital, Washington, and the U.S. territories of Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.
As a state-based force, it is generally the governor of a state or territory who activates and commands the National Guard when necessary.
However, in some situations the National Guard can be "federalized" by the president, thus remaining under his control until the specific federal mission is completed, as is currently the case in Los Angeles.
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Other cases of National Guard deployments
During the widespread Black Lives Matter protests in 2020, more than half the states in the country also activated the National Guard to maintain order and help enforce curfews.
Before that, they were likewise deployed in Los Angeles in 1992 to respond to riots that broke out after police officers who had beaten Rodney King were acquitted at trial.
At that time, rioting, looting and arson spread throughout the city, with dozens killed and injured.
The National Guard was similarly deployed during the era of civil rights struggles in the 1950s and 1960s to help enforce laws against racial segregation in schools, following a landmark Supreme Court ruling.
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