President Trump signed an order authorizing the deployment of National Guard troops to Memphis, Tennessee, on Monday. The order also creates a so-called safe task force, which Trump claims will address violent crime in the city. Law enforcement officers from several federal agencies will also be dispatched to Memphis, including the FBI, DEA, ICE and Homeland Security.
“This is nothing more than a power play for more authoritarianism from this administration,” says Justin J. Pearson, Democratic Tennessee state representative. “We are dealing with the consequences of people who are in positions of power who do not care about our lives, who do not care about our communities, who don’t care about eliminating poverty. They don’t even care about crime,” he adds.