“‘Optics matter.’ National Guard deployments amid unrest have a long and controversial history”

William Banks, Professor Emeritus at the College of Law, was interviewed by PBS NewsHour for the article “‘Optics matter.’ National Guard deployments amid unrest have a long and controversial history.” The article breaks down the legality and history behind the deployment of the National Guard on U.S. soil, as “when major protests erupted in dozens of cities around the country in the wake of George Floyd’s death, many states responded by calling on the National Guard to police demonstrations and to enforce curfews.” Professor Banks, an expert on military law, said that “the National Guard is trained to help domestically in a variety of capacities, however, “they are members of the military, not law enforcement, so they are largely trained to supplement military jobs.”