DHS Creates Statue Defense Force to Oppose ‘Violent Anarchists and Rioters’

A broken Statue of Liberty figure is seen between glass shatters outside a looted souvenir
AFP Johannes EISELE

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has created a task force to help protect federal memorials and statues from the mobs that claim they are symbols of “white supremacy.”

“DHS is answering the President’s call to use our law enforcement personnel across the country to protect our historic landmarks,” said a statement from acting DHS secretary Chad Wolf.

“We won’t stand idly by while violent anarchists and rioters seek not only to vandalize and destroy the symbols of our nation, but to disrupt law and order and sow chaos in our communities.”

The statement continues:

On June 26th, President Trump issued an Executive Order to ensure that our historic monuments and statues will be protected. The Order, “Protecting American Monuments, Memorials, and Statues and Combating Recent Criminal Activity,” directs DHS, within its statutory authority, to provide personnel to assist with the protection of federal monuments, memorials, statues, or property.

As a result, DHS created the PACT, which will conduct ongoing assessments of potential civil unrest or destruction and allocate resources to protect people and property. This may involve potential surge activity to ensure the continuing protection of critical locations. DHS’s Office of Operations Coordination will also partner closely with the Departments of Justice and Interior to establish information and intelligence sharing.

“As we approach the July 4th holiday, I have directed the deployment and pre-positioning of Rapid Deployment Teams (RDT) across the country to respond to potential threats to facilities and property,” said Acting Secretary Wolf. “While the Department respects every American’s right to protest peacefully, violence and civil unrest will not be tolerated.”

The protestors argue Americans’ civic culture — including the memorials — creates and preserves the “structural racism” that supposedly explains how jobs and wealth are distributed among individuals and groups throughout the United States.

 

 

 

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