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#TalkRadio – September 9: Organizers and Fighters For Justice Unite! #FreeDC Protests, NAACP Florida Recent Convention, and Chicago Prepares!
September 9, 2025: Organizers and Fighters For Justice Unite! #FreeDC Protests, NAACP Florida Recent Convention, and Chicago Prepares!
The nonpartisan “Igniting Change Radio Show with Barbara Arnwine, Esq. and Daryl Jones, Esq.” program will be aired from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on Radio One’s WOL 1450 AM in the Washington, DC metropolitan area as well as nationwide on WOLDCNEWS.COM and Barbaraarnwine.com.
Please note, during the show there are 3 hard stop commercial breaks at 12:13 PM Eastern Time, 12:28 PM ET and 12:43 PM ET.
SPEAKERS:
Rev. Dr. Janette Wilson, Esq.: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM ET (11:00 AM – 11:57 AM)
Current COO of the Rainbow PUSH Coalition (RPC); served as Senior Advisor to Rev. Jesse L Jackson, Sr.; and, Special Assistant to the Chief Administrative Officer of the Chicago Public Schools
Eboni Jean-Charles: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM ET
Transformative Justice Coalition Alumni; Hosted a John Lewis National Day of Action 2025 Event in Miami, Florida at The Roots Bookstore & Market; Eboni Jean-Charles, MBA, MS is the Director of Programs at Amplify Community Resources; previously served as Chair of the NAACP Miami-Dade Branch Young Adults Committee, where she mobilized young voters and advanced financial literacy and social justice programming. She holds an MBA, a Master of Science, and a Bachelor of Science in Health Education and Behavior, and she is continuing her pursuit of a Doctor of Medicine degree.
Donald Hart Sr.: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM ET
Current President of NAACP FL
Alex Dodds: 12:00 PM – 12:57 PM ET
Alex Dodds is a co-founder of Free DC, the renewed campaign to protect DC Home Rule and win lasting dignity for the people of the District of Columbia.
INTRODUCTION:
Hi Igniters For Change! The Igniting Change Radio Show on Tuesday, September 9th, 2025, from 12:00 PM – 1:00 PM Eastern Time, entitled “Organizers and Fighters For Justice Unite! #FreeDC Protests, NAACP Florida Recent Convention, and Chicago Prepares!”, will be live with Radio Show Co-Hosts and Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) Co-Leaders Attorneys Barbara Arnwine, Esq. and Daryl Jones, Esq. and will feature special guests Alex Dodd; Rev. Dr. Janette Wilson, Esq.; Eboni Jean-Charles; and, Donald Hart Sr.
On August 11th, 2025, President Donald Trump invoked Section 740 of the Home Rule Act (1973) to assume federal control over Washington, D.C.’s Metropolitan Police Department and deploy National Guard troops to the city, citing a “crime emergency” (Markus & Cheney, 2025, POLITICO, https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/04/washington-dc-national-guard-trump-lawsuit-00544008). The Home Rule Act, signed by President Nixon, was created to grant D.C. residents limited self-governance after nearly a century of direct congressional control. It established an elected mayor and council but retained congressional authority over the city’s budget and laws (Solly, 2025, Smithsonian Magazine, https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-1973-dc-home-rule-act-enabled-the-nations-capital-to-govern-itself-with-congressional-oversight-180987180/). Despite its sweeping implications, no president had previously invoked this section of the Act, largely due to its controversial nature and the political risks of overriding local governance in the nation’s capital (Wikipedia contributors, 2025, Wikipedia, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/District_of_Columbia_Home_Rule_Act).
By September 4th, 2025, over 2,300 National Guard troops had joined federal law enforcement agencies in nightly patrols across the city, which is uniquely vulnerable to federal intervention due to its status as a federal district, which is not a state (MacFarlane & Mosk, 2025, CBS News, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-dc-national-guard-deployment-lawsuit/). These forces, which are from Ohio, West Virginia, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, Georgia, and South Dakota, were not trained in local law enforcement and operated independently of D.C. officials (Slayton, 2025, Task & Purpose, https://taskandpurpose.com/news/georgia-national-guard-washington-dc/; CBS News Staff, 2025, CBS News, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/d-c-national-guard-deployment-in-the-capital-extended-to-nov-30/). The deployment, initially expected to last 30 days, was extended through November 30th by an order signed by Army Secretary Dan Driscoll and executed by Brig. Gen. Leland D. Blanchard II, the interim commanding general of the D.C. National Guard. This extension was justified as necessary to “ensure everyone that walks these city streets is safe” and to qualify troops for military benefits such as housing allowances and health care, which require deployments longer than 30 days (Flaherty & Boccia, 2025, ABC News, https://abcnews.go.com/Politics/army-extends-orders-dc-national-guard-nov-30/story?id=125266247).
The White House claimed success, citing over 1,841 arrests and the seizure of 188 illegal firearms as of September 4th (Attorney General’s Office, 2025, MSN News, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/attorney-general-schwalb-sues-to-stop-national-guard-federal-deployment-in-dc/ar-AA1LSAc9). However, the racial breakdown of these arrests has drawn scrutiny. While full demographic data has not been released, early reports indicate that a disproportionate number of arrests occurred in Wards 7 and 8—areas with predominantly Black populations—raising concerns about racial profiling and selective enforcement (NBC Washington Staff, 2025, NBC Washington, https://www.nbcwashington.com/news/local/portion-of-arrests-in-dcs-ward-7-8-is-unchanged-since-police-takeover-mpd-data-says/3977512/). In addition to arrests, federal agents have conducted searches and traffic stops, often in high-crime areas, though critics argue these actions lack transparency and oversight (Popli, 2025, TIME, https://time.com/7309421/trump-dc-police-arrests-national-guard/). During a speech on September 8th, 2025, Trump suggested that domestic violence should not be counted in crime statistics, stating, “If a man has a little fight with the wife, they say this was a crime, see? So now I can’t claim 100%,” implying that such incidents unfairly inflate crime numbers and undermine his narrative of a “crime-free zone” (Dorn, 2025, Forbes, https://www.forbes.com/sites/saradorn/2025/09/08/trump-downplays-domestic-violence-as-a-much-lesser-crime/).
On September 4th, 2025, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, asserting that the deployment violates both the Home Rule Act (1973) and the Posse Comitatus Act (1878), which prohibits the use of federal military forces in domestic law enforcement unless explicitly authorized by Congress (Schwalb, 2025, CBS News, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-dc-national-guard-deployment-lawsuit/). The suit names Trump, the Pentagon, the Department of Justice, the Army, and the U.S. Marshals Service as defendants and seeks a permanent injunction to halt the deployment (Doherty, 2025, CNBC, https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/04/trump-national-guard-lawsuit-dc.html). This lawsuit echoes a similar legal battle in California, where U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer ruled on September 2nd, 2025, that Trump’s deployment of National Guard troops to Los Angeles in June violated the Posse Comitatus Act. The judge emphasized that federal troops cannot engage in civilian law enforcement, a ruling the Trump administration has appealed (MacFarlane & Mosk, 2025, CBS News, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-dc-national-guard-deployment-lawsuit/). The D.C. case has been assigned to U.S. District Judge Jia Cobb, who is also presiding over a separate Trump-related lawsuit involving Federal Reserve board member Lisa Cook (Markus & Cheney, 2025, POLITICO, https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/04/washington-dc-national-guard-trump-lawsuit-00544008).
Mayor Muriel Bowser, while initially sidelined by the federal takeover, has taken steps to manage the situation. On September 2nd, 2025, she signed an executive order requiring maximum coordination between local and federal law enforcement “to the extent allowable by law,” signaling a reluctant accommodation of the extended military presence (USA Today Staff, 2025, USA Today via MSN, https://www.msn.com/en-us/politics/government/dc-sues-trump-administration-to-halt-national-guard-deployment/ar-AA1LT60L). Bowser has publicly stated her focus is on “exiting the emergency,” though her administration has not directly challenged the federal control in court, deferring instead to the attorney general’s legal strategy (CBS News Staff, 2025, CBS News, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/trump-dc-national-guard-deployment-lawsuit/).
The broader implications of Trump’s actions in D.C. are profound. Critics argue that the federalization of local law enforcement and military deployment without local consent undermines democratic norms and sets a dangerous precedent for executive overreach. The economic impact has also been noted, with business activity and tourism reportedly depressed due to the heightened military presence (Markus & Cheney, 2025, POLITICO, https://www.politico.com/news/2025/09/04/washington-dc-national-guard-trump-lawsuit-00544008). As legal proceedings unfold, the outcome may redefine the boundaries of presidential power in domestic security operations.
The residents of D.C. have been vigorously opposing this military occupation with daily protests. Many people’s lives have been significantly disrupted: people are staying in their homes longer; they’re not driving or going to work; they feel trapped, humiliated, betrayed, and feel as if they’ve lost their full citizenship.
In Washington, D.C., protests have intensified in response to the ongoing federal occupation. On September 6th, 2025, thousands marched in the “We Are All D.C.” demonstration, organized by Free DC and the American Civil Liberties Union, demanding an end to the National Guard deployment and federal control of the Metropolitan Police Department (Calabrese, 2025, FOX 5 DC, https://www.fox5dc.com/news/we-are-all-dc-march-washington-national-guard-protest-sept-6-2025). Protesters carried signs reading “Free DC,” “Trump Must Go Now,” and “Resist Tyranny,” with chants echoing through Meridian Hill Park and Freedom Plaza. The protest included undocumented immigrants, pro-Palestinian groups, and longtime D.C. residents who described the federal presence as an affront to democracy (Mutikani & Spetalnick, 2025, Reuters via Yahoo News, https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/washington-dc-residents-protest-against-173953281.html). Former diplomat Mark Fitzpatrick called the situation “authoritarian,” while artist Jun Lee said she was “heartbroken” to see her city militarized. The demonstration marked the fourth week of federal control, with over 2,000 troops from six Republican-led states patrolling the city. Though Mayor Muriel Bowser signed an order to coordinate with federal law enforcement, she has expressed hope that the National Guard’s mission will end soon. Nonetheless, the Army extended the deployment through November 30th, 2025 (Calabrese, 2025, FOX 5 DC, https://www.fox5dc.com/news/we-are-all-dc-march-washington-national-guard-protest-sept-6-2025).
Trump has signaled intentions to replicate this model in other cities, including Chicago, Baltimore, and New Orleans. However, legal experts warn that such actions would face greater resistance in sovereign states, where the president lacks the same authority as in D.C. (VanLandingham & Nunn, 2025, MSN News, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/trump-prods-at-chicago-takeover-as-legal-political-challenges-loom/ar-AA1LRFwp). Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson have both condemned the idea, with Johnson calling it “tyranny.” Even conservative commentator Megyn Kelly, typically a Trump ally, broke ranks on September 3rd, 2025, stating on her SiriusXM show, “It very clearly is not constitutionally permissible. He cannot do it… I really hope he doesn’t do it, because I don’t want a world in which I’m siding with Gov. Pritzker over President Trump. But I will if he does it, because he can’t do it legally” (Kelly, 2025, Media Matters, https://www.mediamatters.org/megyn-kelly/megyn-kelly-trump-possibly-sending-troops-chicago-it-very-clearly-not-constitutionally).
On September 6th, 2025, Trump posted a meme on Truth Social depicting himself as Lt. Col. Kilgore from Apocalypse Now, with the caption “I love the smell of deportations in the morning. Chicago about to find out why it’s called the Department of WAR,” referencing his executive order rebranding the Department of Defense (Trump, 2025, Truth Social via Media Matters, https://www.mediamatters.org/truth-social/trump-posts-apocalypse-now-meme-about-chicago-and-department-war).
Chicago has mounted a defiant and coordinated response to President Trump’s threats to deploy federal troops and immigration agents to the city. On September 6th, 2025, thousands of demonstrators gathered downtown at Congress Plaza Garden for a mass protest organized by the Coalition Against the Trump Agenda (CATA), joined by groups such as the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, the Chicago Teachers Union, and GoodKids MadCity. The rally, titled “Chicago Says No Trump, No Troops,” was a direct response to Trump’s September 6th Truth Social post. (Koch, 2025, Fox News, https://www.foxnews.com/us/chicago-mayor-calls-trumps-federalization-threats-beneath-honor-our-nation-protests-planned; MSN Staff, 2025, MSN News, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/chicago-trump-protest-march-groups-rally-downtown-against-deploying-federal-troops/ar-AA1M1vm9). Illinois Governor JB Pritzker and Mayor Brandon Johnson condemned the post, with Pritzker calling Trump a “wannabe dictator” and Johnson stating the president’s threats were “beneath the honor of our nation” (Pereira et al., 2025, ABC News, https://abcnews.go.com/US/chicago-braces-expanded-immigration-enforcement-local-officials-push/story?id=125328501). Johnson also issued an executive order on August 30th, 2025, reinforcing Chicago’s commitment to the Illinois TRUST Act (2017), which limits local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement (Mendoza, 2025, MSN News, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/chicago-vs-trump-s-takeover/ar-AA1M892o). The city has mobilized legal aid, rapid response teams, and community education campaigns to prepare residents for potential federal action. On Labor Day weekend, organized labor—including SEIU, UAW, and CTU—joined thousands in a march that showcased Chicago’s resistance muscle. Veterans and activists have also called on Pritzker to use his authority as commander-in-chief of the Illinois National Guard to block Trump’s orders, though the governor has not publicly endorsed that strategy (Mendoza, 2025, MSN News, https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/chicago-vs-trump-s-takeover/ar-AA1M892o).
Read more about Chicago Mayor Johnson’s thoughts in his September 8th NY Times op-ed: Opinion | Chicago’s Mayor: The National Guard Isn’t What We Need – The New York Times
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/08/opinion/trump-chicago-national-guard.html
QUESTIONS:
Welcome, Guests, All of you are providing essential leadership in your cities and states as we deal with the 9th Month of the Trump Administration’s unlawful attempts to subvert the Constitution to impose an imperial and fascistic presidency.
- Alex: You are a co-founder of #FreeDC. What has been your mission in this fight against the Trump Takeover and Military Occupation?
- Alex: On Saturday, at least 20,000 people took to the streets of DC in a robust and peaceful “We Are All DC” March. Did the March meet your expectations? What was your highlight of the Day?
- Alex: As we broadcast today, there is a major Student Walkout being held all day to protest against the DC occupation.Tell us about this protest.
- Eboni: As a young leader in the Miami Florida community, what does it mean to you that the DC area students are taking this action today calling on all DC residents to resist the military occupation?
- Donald Hart: The NAACP Florida held your Annual Convention; when Daryl and I finished our tribute to your outgoing leader, Adora Obi Nweze, folks were moved by our shouts of #FreeDC! How did you feel in that moment
- Rev. Wilson: In Protest of President Trump’s announcement that ICE is poised to launch “Operation Midway Blitz”, there was major protests this weekend. You have been in the leadership of this opposition movement, tell us why?
- Alex: What lessons have you learned in DC that you want to share with Chicago, New Orleans and other cities being threatened with Federal troop or pervasive ICE takeovers and operations?
- EVERYONE: ALL 4 of you have stepped forward to provide needed leadership during this MAGA movement, please tell our audience why it is so important to be leaders at this time?
- EVERYONE: Any leadership tips you want to share or offer to our listeners?
- EVERYONE: what is it that people are missing about the threat of authoritarianism and racism in TRUMP’S occupation STRATEGY?
- Alex: There has been a robust DC protest movement in opposition to the Takeover with nightly “Noise Every Night “Cacerolazos” on the streets of DC. What else can people do to show their opposition?
- Rev Wilson: How would you rate the early responses to Trump’s threats of Takeover by Governor Wes Moore, Mayor Brandon Johnson, and others?
- In particular, what did you think of the New York Times OP ED by Mayor Johnson urging No Takeover in Chicago?
- Everyone, we know that awareness and organizing is essential to fighting governmental overreach on the road to fascism.
- President Hart: Why did the NAACP Florida devote so much time to providing substantive voting rights training to your members during this weekend’s Convention?
- Eboni: You help lead a 2 ½ hour training session at the NAACP Convention for 100 young members ages 5-26 of the Youth and College Division. Why was this training important? What was your highlight of the training?
- Rev Wilson: You have been on this battlefield often alongside Rev. Jesse Louis Jackson, What is different about this struggle?
- Alex: #FreeDC has been brilliant in keeping up a constant resistance to the Takeover, do you think the Congress will grant Trump’s request for an extension? What can our listeners across the country do to help?
- Everyone, As we wrap up our show, please in one minute provide your final thoughts and also let our audience know how to get in touch with you.
[ Arnwine will remind listeners:
- about the September 24th Reception in Washington, D.C. against The Occupation
- when you make those daily calls to the Congress at 202-224-3121 to Vote to Stop the Trump DC Takeover and Senate to vote No on the SAVE Act
- to stay in those streets!
- Mark Your Calendars Now for NOKINGS PART 2! ON OCTOBER 18TH.
- BE SURE TO SIGN THE PETITION TO DEFEND THE SMITHSONIAN AT AMERICASHISTORYSOS.ORG,
- TJC will continue to vigorously defend the rights of all Americans and will fight the implementation of Project 2025 and our future shows will continue to cover any hate crimes and how we effectively protect ourselves while advancing our agenda for justice.]
- [Daryl, Barbara, and guests may share their favorite books and encourage people to donate towards TJC’s giveaways of banned and affirming books.]