1. United States
2. La.
3. Letter

Your request to deploy 1,000 Louisiana National Guardsmen under federal authority is not leadership—it is propaganda. It is a hollow display meant to curry favor with Donald Trump and advance a dangerous agenda, not protect the people of this state. Let’s be clear: federalizing our military for domestic law enforcement is rooted in fascist idealism. It blurs the sacred boundary between civilian life and military power, a boundary meant to protect citizens from the very brutality your plan invites. Soldiers are trained to defend this nation from external threats, not to patrol, intimidate, and hunt their own people in the streets of Baton Rouge, Shreveport, or New Orleans. Turning our neighborhoods into occupied zones will not reduce crime; it will destroy trust, escalate violence, and deepen the very problems you claim to address. This is not about safety. This is about optics, control, and political theater. Instead of pouring taxpayer resources into militarization, you should be investing in what actually makes communities safer: accessible healthcare, both mental and physical; fully funded schools; opportunities for work and wages that sustain families; and the social workers, counselors, and educators who hold our communities together. Crime does not fall because troops with rifles are stationed on corners. Crime falls when people have hope, stability, and opportunity. Your decision to ignore those truths in favor of militarized spectacle is an insult to every citizen who deserves better. Governor Landry, if you truly want to protect Louisiana, stop pandering to Washington strongmen and start listening to the people of this state. We do not need soldiers on our streets. We need leaders who build communities, not ones who militarize them.