Hundreds rallied in downtown New Orleans Tuesday evening against the prospect of President Donald Trump deploying National Guard troops in the city.
The protest formed in response to Trump stating last week that he was considering whether to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago or a city with a governor who would welcome them, like New Orleans. Trump called Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry a "great governor" and said he "wants us to come in and straighten out a very nice section of this country that's become ... quite tough. Quite bad."
Landry took to X.com shortly after Trump's comments and affirmed that he would welcome help across the state.
President Trump said the White House is considering whether to deploy National Guard troops to Chicago or a place with a governor who would welcome them, like New Orleans.
Organizers of Tuesday's protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Marching from a rally at the Hale Boggs Federal Building, the group traveled on Poydras Street down Loyola Avenue to Canal Street, then back up Magazine Street to their starting point. They carried signs calling out Trump's policies and his renewed controversy stemming from his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
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Hundreds of protesters marched through downtown New Orleans on Sept. 9, 2025, during a demonstration against President Donald Trump's suggestion of deploying National Guard troops to the city. Organizers of the protest said they stand with cities like Los Angeles and Washington D.C., where troops were recently deployed.
Kat Stromquist / Gulf States Newsroom
They also called for support for immigrants and other issues, including transgender rights, police accountability and more, chanting slogans including "From New Orleans to Palestine, occupation is a crime!"
"This is our city," Mich Gonzalez, a speaker at the protest, said. "We're not going to let them come here and intimidate our Black and brown siblings. We're not going to have it."
Speakers at a rally held before the group marched through the city said that any troops deployed in New Orleans would be met with further protests.
This story was produced by the Gulf States Newsroom, a collaboration between Mississippi Public Broadcasting, WBHM in Alabama, WWNO and WRKF in Louisiana and NPR.
