A U.S. senator and congresswoman joined over 100 Georgetown University students at a walkout in Red Square Sept. 9 to protest President Donald Trump’s policies and the National Guard’s presence in Washington, D.C. 

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) (CAS ’86) and Sen. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) addressed the rally alongside student speakers and representatives of local D.C. organizations, railing against Trump’s immigration practices and calling for congressional action. The walkout coincided with similar actions at other D.C. universities, including Howard University, George Washington University and American University, and was organized by Free D.C., a movement advocating for D.C. statehood and self-governance.

Jayapal said the Trump administration’s actions in D.C. were unlike the behavior of any previous presidential administration. 

“This is an unprecedented moment in our country where we have an authoritarian leader who is deploying federal troops to Washington, D.C., to cities across the country, militarizing our streets,” Jayapal said in her speech.

The walkout came three days after activist groups organized a large protest in D.C. against Trump, who assumed control of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) Aug. 11, deployed 850 federal agents to assist with policing and deployed 2,200 National Guard troops to the District in response to an alleged uptick in crime. The federalization of the MPD under the D.C. Home Rule Act, the law outlining D.C.’s partial self-governance, will expire Sept. 10 without an extension granted by Congress, which experts do not expect will be granted. 

Jayapal commended the student demonstrators, saying they were leading the effort against Trump’s actions.

“Don’t forget that every single movement, every single event, every single walkout, every single protest, every single act of noncooperation is part of what it takes to build the people’s movement,” Jayapal said. “And you are here today because you believe in a different future than what we have right now.”

Markey said Trump’s assertion of a crime emergency in cities like D.C., Los Angeles, Calif., and Chicago, Ill., where Trump has deployed or suggested he will deploy the National Guard, is connected to these cities’ racial demographics. 

“In D.C., the president is attempting to create an impression that the crime rate is going up rather than down — that there is, in fact, a crisis here in the District of Columbia,” Markey said at the walkout. “What he’s doing is attempting, not just here in D.C., but in Chicago, in L.A., in Boston, is to try to characterize communities that are majority minority — that are majority Black and brown — as being unsafe to live.” 

Although D.C. has seen an increase in homicide rates since 2012, to 25 per 100,000 residents in 2024, violent crime in the city is at a 30-year low.

Markey added that he thinks the deployment of the National Guard, especially from other states like Ohio, South Carolina and West Virginia, is a waste of resources. 

“These governors who are sending their National Guard troops here to D.C. at a cost of $1 million a day, they should be protecting Medicaid and SNAP and educational opportunities for young people back in their own home space rather than participating in this charade that Donald Trump is creating here in the District of Columbia,” Markey said. “This is not about policing; this is about political theater.”

Students at the protest led chants such as “The students united will never be defeated” and “Free D.C.” 

Scout Cardillo (CAS ’27), a student organizer with Free D.C. who attended the protest, said the National Guard’s presence in the Georgetown neighborhood has caused more students to get involved with campus activism. 

“We’re seeing a growing support in students, especially as public education increases, as we’re seeing National Guard just outside of the front gates or on Wisconsin Ave. right near campus,” Cardillo told The Hoya. “It makes it a lot more real for people.” 

Cardillo said they hope the walkout and future actions from Free D.C. will encourage the university administration, which recently altered its conduct policies for protests, to stand with students against the Trump administration.

“We’ll have more teachings and public education on campus and hopefully be able to make some connections with the Georgetown administration regarding repealing some of the changes that they’ve made recently to the code of conduct that restrict student speech and protesting, as well as pushing the administration to make an outwardly spoken commitment to noncooperation with federal agents and ICE on all campuses of Georgetown, including the hospital,” Cardillo said. 

A university spokesperson said Georgetown’s policies remain committed to protecting individuals’ freedom of expression. 

“Georgetown’s long-standing Speech and Expression policy protects the fundamental right of members of our community to free expression, dialogue and academic inquiry,” the spokesperson wrote to The Hoya. “We respect the rights of members of our community to express their personal views and are committed to maintaining the values of academic freedom and serving as a forum for the free exchange of ideas, even when those ideas may be controversial or objectionable to some.” 

In an Aug. 14 email to the Georgetown community, Erik Smulson, vice president for public affairs, wrote that more police may be present on campus, though he expects all law enforcement to respect students’ rights and due process. The updated guidelines for implementing the university’s free speech and expression policies require students who are violating university policies to remove face coverings, among other changes. 

Many students, including Elinor Clark (CAS ’27), attended the protest to feel solidarity with peers concerned about the Trump administration. Clark said it was reaffirming to see so many students at the walkout.

“I am filled with such joy to be a part of a community that cares so deeply about marginalized communities being attacked,” Clark told The Hoya. “We are all here today because we care about protecting our community, and it’s very inspiring to see how many people will not stand idly by while Trump strips us of our rights.”

Adena Marie Norwood (GRD ’26), who attended the walkout, said the demonstration reminded her that there is broad national opposition to the Trump administration. 

“You don’t really see it online, on your feed, that people are working hard towards it, because obviously there’s a lot of actors that don’t want that broadcasted,” Norwood said. “But it’s a good reminder that a fair majority of people are in support and are fighting and do have a life outside of fascism that they’d rather live.”

Trump’s approval rating stands at 42% according to a Sept. 9 poll from Reuters. 

Nico Cefalu (CAS ’27), who is the Georgetown chapter president of the civil rights organization American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said the situation in D.C. reminds him of his family’s experience in Chile under a military dictatorship. 

“I was talking to my parents a couple days ago, and I was mentioning how there’s checkpoints throughout the city now,” Cefalu told The Hoya. “And my mom kept saying that was just like what it was in Chile when they left — the military just set up checkpoints and they had to show ID.” 

“I know my grandpa, he’s thinking about moving back to Chile, because he feels like it’s chasing him everywhere he goes,” Cefalu added. “He moved his family here to get away from this and now it’s happening here.”

Eva Sofia Esposito (SFS ’27), who lives in the D.C. metropolitan area, said she attended the protest because she is saddened by how Trump’s actions are affecting her hometown.

“There’s no running away from what’s going on in D.C. because there’s National Guard on every single corner,” Esposito said. “I have seen with my own eyes — National Guard, police, militarization crowding out the places I have called home for 23 years.”

“D.C., for me, has always been a city I’ve been proud to say is my home,” Esposito added. “I’ve been proud to stand by it and seeing it under attack has been devastating to not just myself but the people I’m surrounded with every day — people I grew up seeing. So I’m proud to fight back.”

Clark said students would continue demonstrating until the National Guard leaves the District.

“Donald Trump needs to know that we are united, we are loud and we are present,” Clark said. “And we will not let up until the National Guard is off our streets.”