Federal agents deployed during the Trump administration’s law enforcement surge in American cities have shot two Christian clergy members in the head with chemicals or projectiles. One was meditating while holding a sign, and the other had his arms outstretched in prayer. The administration says both were among groups of protesters impeding law enforcement.
Other protesters have been shoved to the ground by immigration or border agents, been chased after taunting them, or had their phones snatched away. One person wearing an animal costume was pepper sprayed while trying to assist someone who had fallen. Another person was detained by local police after trolling National Guard troops deployed to Washington, DC, by playing “The Imperial March” from Star Wars.
President Donald Trump says his crime and immigration crackdown, which hit New Orleans and the Twin Cities in Minnesota in recent days, is meant to address “anarchy,” describing Democrat-led cities as violent warzones that demanded a militarized response.
But in several of those cities, federal agents deployed by the president have detained, chased, shoved, sprayed or shot with projectiles people who seemed to be protesting peacefully. In a couple of cases, state or local authorities have taken the unusual step of investigating the federal agents’ actions.
CNN has reviewed more than a dozen videos posted to social media that show federal officers, primarily working for the Department of Homeland Security, manhandling people who did not appear to be posing an immediate threat. The videos are snapshots and don’t necessarily capture all of the circumstances before and after the confrontations.
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