A church’s perspective on Trump’s deployment of the National Guard in D.C. : NPR

Scott Simon, host:

East Washington Heights Baptist Church has roots in the south-east of DC which dates back to the 1890s. Kip Banks has been the pastor for more than two decades.

Kip Banks: I wanted to have a southern church, but it didn’t work. So God sent me to Alabama avenue in the south-east of DC

(LAUGH)

Simon: Oh, my God.

Banks: But just to serve the people. There are so many needs here at East Washington.

Simon: He thinks that the service is at the heart of the spiritual mission of his church. They direct a food bank and welcomed several schools. And in district 7 of the city, which had a high crime rate, its church has sometimes also presented itself in flight statistics.

Banks: We have had several break -in introductions over the years, and therefore, you know, the crime is part of – just part of life in Washington, DC, it is not uncommon to have crime. For us, it’s really a question of reacting to crime. And so earlier this year, in March, there was a break in our educational wing, and I will show you where it took place.

(Soundbit of steps)

Banks: And they broke down down, and they came, and they stole some laptops and other equipment of this room here. It was a fully functional classroom. We actually have cameras, so we could see the people who …

Simon: Yeah.

Banks: … intervened.

Simon: Oh, my. Do you know who they are?

Banks: no. Now we have also had other break -in introductions.

Simon: Yeah.

Banks: We had an introduction by break -in where young men intervened and they entered the communion supplies.

Simon: communion supplies, like waffles and …

Banks: Yes, exactly. By forgiveness …

Simon: … wine?

Banks: Well, we use grape juice but (laughs) …

Simon: Oh, I’m sorry. The Irish Catholic side of my family, on this side.

Banks: Amen. Amen.

Simon: grape juice.

Banks: And so they burst out, and they vandalized the church. And it was on the news. And they interview the members of the Church, and they said, are you angry? We said no, we are not upset. We love the community. And now, a young woman saw what we said, and she said, it is the kind of church to which I want to belong …

Simon: Oh, my God.

Banks: … a church that has compassion for the community.

Simon: Yeah.

Banks: And so she bought a house in the community. She joined the church and met a young man, and now they have three little boys (laughs).

Simon: Oh, my God.

Banks: The good comes out of evil. And for us, everything is in the way you treat evil, as evil being part of life, or is evil an end of life event? When for us, this is not the case. Evil is a reality …

Simon: Yeah.

Banks: … and we must also manage it with crime.

Simon: President Trump deployed the National Guard to DC, as well as other federal agencies, to suppress crime. We spoke with Pastor Banks of the situation, as well as two of his faithful, Legrand Baldwin (PH) and his wife, Vassar Baldwin (PH). The pastor said the crime was already down before the troops arrived.

Banks: Here at the East Washington Heights Baptist Church, we have a daily prayer group at 7 am every morning, and mostly pray to the crimes that occur in the community. When there is a homicide, we pray about it. We pray for people victims of homicide. We pray for people who commit crime. And now, in the past year, we are praying less about the murders that occur in the city because crime has dropped. But despite this, the president said that there was an emergency and a need for the troops of the National Guard to patrol the streets of Washington, DC and all the members I know, none of them feel safe due to the call of the troops of the National Guard. If anything, it’s exactly the opposite.

Simon: What do your parishioners tell you?

Banks: They are not happy. They are overwhelmed. They are troubled. Lifestyles have changed. For example, unfortunately, in this neighborhood, we do not have the best restaurants, so we have to cross the river for dinner. And they want to cross the river, but they are afraid to cross because they do not want to meet troops. Not only that, the members of my church, they have at least compassion, the lost and left behind. They are also concerned about the order of Doordash or Uber to eat because they saw the accounts where the Doordash drivers and the drivers of Uber Eat have been removed by ice. Parents are upset. They are concerned about young black men and young black women, but young black men in particular, if they will be targeted. Just the members are upset on a number of fronts.

Simon: The mayor of Washington, DC, Muriel Bowser, who was not a colleague – ally of President Trump in the past, said this week, she applauded additional sources of application of the law. She said that carjacks are down 87% and that the whole crime is down 15%.

Banks: There is a difference between the police and the military occupation. There is a philosophy of how to manage crime. It is a neighborhood philosophy where you get to know people. You understand and what they live. And in particular, as a church, we subscribe to the beloved community, which is described in Acts 2, where everyone has food to eat, and everyone has shelter, whatever the context, whatever the color. They are all loved. And this military occupation hinders this. People do not feel safe.

Simon: Let me turn to our couple here, if we can. How do you feel, both?

Legrand Baldwin: Honestly, I feel pain and anxiety. And I think that because I think it is a selective scope in terms of the implementation of the military here. And I speak as a veteran. I know that the veterans have not been trained to do the work pushed to them. The military is now played in a role that should be left to the municipal police services.

Simon: Have you been prevented from doing something? Did you prevent yourself from doing something? Have you been arrested by an agent of the police to do anything?

L Baldwin: I was not arrested, but I have a son who has mental challenges, and I worry about him every day. Do you have your username or something? I don’t have my identifier on me. I see it. I’m worried about him.

Vassar Baldwin: I just want to say, I think if Trump was so concerned about security, why did he allow them to withdraw a billion dollars from the mayor’s budget? The president asked for dollars to embellish Washington, DC, to make it a beautiful city. But it is my prayer to restore a billion that he drew from the mayor’s budget so that she could hire more police officers, who are necessary. And I think the crime was really going to decrease then.

L Baldwin: You cannot deny that there has been a reduction in the crime. But if you do not erase the causes of the crime, they will go up.

V Baldwin: And back to the mayor, I think she did a fantastic job given what she has to work with. She must be very careful with what she says because things can turn against her in a minute. She must walk a thin line. Think about it, do you know? She has no control. This man controls everything. So what are you going to say? Oh, Mr. Trump, I’m not satisfied with what you do. I need you to go. And I said it, blah, bla, blah. Is that what you think would happen?

Simon: It is necessary, while we sit here in a church, to note that Wednesday of this week, on the first day of school, there was a shooting in a church – children. And, of course, we have seen other shots in churches and synagogues. I just wonder what your feelings are now, pastor.

Banks: Yes, certainly, very discouraged by what happened in Minneapolis, and our prayers are with them there. And there is actually a link between what happened and the police and crime. And this is one of the reasons, once again, why we are so concerned about this order to deploy the National Guard here in the national capital. It costs a million dollars a day. And one of the results of the COVVI-19 pandemic was an increase in mental illness. And so if we really want to fight crime, you must have resources to approach mental well-being.

And so when you talk about Trump, there is a more important problem, and the more important problem is what is happening with the average American and every day. Yes, we exceeded what he called the big and beautiful bill. I call it the big ugly bill. In this bill, food coupons are cut. Medicaid is cut. Poverty will increase. And so what I say, overall is that it is a compassion problem. And for me, I like the statue of freedom – you know, what it says. You know, give me, you know, your poor. Give me, you are tired, your masses. This is what America is.

Simon: huddling masses aspiring to breathe for free.

Banks: Yes.

Simon: Send them, the homeless, Tempest-Tost for me. I lift my light.

Banks: This is what makes America great, to help each person in our society and not only those at the top.

Simon: Pastor Kip Banks, Legrand and Vassar Baldwin by East Washington Heights Baptist Church in district 7 in Washington, DC

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