ACLU, protesters sue Trump over use of force on peaceful demonstrators
The American Civil Liberties Union and protesters from Maryland and Washington, D.C., filed a lawsuit on Thursday against the Trump administration over the use of force to push peaceful demonstrators out of Lafayette Square on Monday.
President Trump, Attorney General William Barr, and other federal officials are named as defendants in the lawsuit. Security personnel used tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the crowd, which was protesting the death of George Floyd. This happened shortly before Trump walked over to take photos in front of St. John's Church.
The lawsuit states federal forces had "no legitimate basis to destroy the peaceful gathering," and this case is about Trump and Barr "ordering the use of violence against peaceful demonstrators who were speaking out against discriminatory police brutality targeted at black people."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Barr, who has been leading the federal response to the protests, on Thursday defended the use of force, saying protesters were becoming "unruly." Several military leaders have in turn denounced it, with former Defense Secretary James Mattis, a retired Marine general, calling the show of force an "abuse of executive authority," adding that "we must reject and hold accountable those in office who would make a mockery of our Constitution."
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
5 Senate-approved cartoons on the Trump confirmation hearings
Cartoons Artists take on non-answers, drunken rhetoric, and more
By The Week US Published
-
The best new cars for 2025
The Week Recommends From family SUVs to luxury all-electrics these are the most hotly anticipated vehicles
By The Week UK Published
-
Jean-Marie Le Pen: rabble-rousing co-founder of the French National Front
In the Spotlight Once called the 'most hated man in France', Le Pen maintained that his ideas were simply 'ahead of their time'
By The Week UK Published
-
DeSantis appoints Florida's top lawyer to US Senate
Speed Read The state's attorney general, Ashley Moody, will replace Sen. Marco Rubio in the Senate
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Pam Bondi downplays politics at confirmation hearing
Speed Read Trump's pick for attorney general claimed her Justice Department would not prosecute anyone for political reasons
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Biden warns of oligarchy in farewell address
Speed Read The president issued a stark warning about the dangers of unchecked power in the hands of the ultra-wealthy
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Hegseth boosts hopes for confirmation amid grilling
Speed Read The Senate held confirmation hearings for Pete Hegseth, Trump's Defense Secretary nominee
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden removes Cuba from terrorism blacklist
Speed read The move is likely to be reversed by the incoming Trump administration, as it was Trump who first put Cuba on the terrorism blacklist in his first term
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
South Korea arrests impeached president
speed read Impeached South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol has been detained, making him the first sitting president to be arrested in the country's history
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
House GOP unveils bill for Trump to buy Greenland
Speed Read The bill would allow the U.S. to purchase the Danish territory — or procure it through economic or military force
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
DOJ releases Trump Jan. 6 special counsel report
Speed Read Jack Smith's report details the president-elect's "criminal efforts to retain power" amid the 2020 election
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published