I lived in northern Virgina (DC suburb) and I remember the surreal weirdness of armed soldiers suddenly everywhere in downtown DC after 9/11. It did indeed feel like I was on a movie set. This is worse... instead of posing to "protect us from terrorists" now they are posing to "protect" us from fellow Americans. Neither made much sense, but at least as Americans we were united then.
So much of what we're experiencing now began back then, I think...we were more united, but over the subsequent months we decided we were OK with unimaginable things in the name of safety. And then we walked that path, step by step, for 25 years
As a DC resident, I definitely resonate with “Yelling at the Guard feels like yelling at customer service.” ICE is terrorizing our communities, but walking by the National Guard you often get the vibe that they’re about as bewildered as we are.
I lived in northern Virgina (DC suburb) and I remember the surreal weirdness of armed soldiers suddenly everywhere in downtown DC after 9/11. It did indeed feel like I was on a movie set. This is worse... instead of posing to "protect us from terrorists" now they are posing to "protect" us from fellow Americans. Neither made much sense, but at least as Americans we were united then.
So much of what we're experiencing now began back then, I think...we were more united, but over the subsequent months we decided we were OK with unimaginable things in the name of safety. And then we walked that path, step by step, for 25 years
As a DC resident, I definitely resonate with “Yelling at the Guard feels like yelling at customer service.” ICE is terrorizing our communities, but walking by the National Guard you often get the vibe that they’re about as bewildered as we are.
Thanks, Laura. Better coverage than anything I've seen in the NYTimes.
Excellent piece. Thanks once again for being our, "boots on the ground." Like the lady said, stay safe.
If Union Station is so safe now, why didn’t JD have his kids with him?
I'm in DC for a month. I've been all over the Mall, its museums and its monuments.
There are more Guards here than tourists.
And the tourists are only speaking English. There are no international visitors at all.
This.is.terrible.