Domestic Terrorism by Masked Paramilitaries: We Don't Know Who They Are
Picture this: masked men in military tactical gear, carrying assault rifles, emerging from unmarked armored vehicles designed for war zones. They refuse to identify themselves, respond with hostility when asked for credentials, and have drawn weapons on American citizens who tried to photograph their license plates. Over the past month, more than ten thousand of these armed paramilitaries have been deployed across American cities, accompanied by active-duty Marines and National Guard troops carrying combat weapons.
This sounds like a scene from an authoritarian nightmare, but it's happening right now on American streets. The terrifying reality is that we don't actually know who these people are.
What's Happening Now
Nearly ten thousand military personnel are currently deployed across American cities conducting immigration operations. In Los Angeles alone, 4,700 troops including active-duty Marines patrol the streets with combat weapons. Texas has deployed over 5,000 National Guard troops statewide. The federal government has requested 20,000 National Guard troops nationally for immigration enforcement, according to a Department of Homeland Security memo obtained by NPR.
To put this in perspective, the entire Iraq War surge deployed 30,000 troops. We are approaching two-thirds the scale of a full wartime military surge, but this one is deployed against American civilians whose apparent crime is waiting for public transportation or looking for work.
The scale and militarization of these operations is unprecedented. What sets these raids apart from typical civil enforcement actions was their military-style execution, according to witnesses, legal observers and advocacy groups. Federal agents involved in the operations were heavily armed and dressed in tactical gear, with some wearing camouflage and carrying rifles.
The disproportion becomes absurd when you see the operations themselves. Images show two armed agents arresting one unarmed person while being guarded by four combat-armed troops. Six heavily armed operatives to detain a single individual who poses no apparent threat. What exactly are they afraid of? A man waiting for a bus? A worker washing cars? Clearly these actions are not about anyone's safety--they are about terrorizing entire communities.
These operations reveal they have unclear criteria for who they're targeting. NBC News reported that of close to 1,200 arrests in a single day, just 613, or nearly 52%, were considered "criminal arrests." The rest appeared to be nonviolent offenders or people who have not committed any criminal offense other than crossing the border illegally, which is a civil violation, not criminal. This is a stark departure from Trump's campaign promises to target "the worst of the worst"--murderers, rapists, and violent criminals.
The 23-year-old member of Mexico's Indigenous Zapotec community had been living as an undocumented immigrant in the United States with his parents for four years. His arrest at Ambiance Apparel in Los Angeles on Friday and removal happened so quickly that his parents said they didn't have time to get an attorney, according to The Washington Post's reporting. His father said his son does not have a criminal record.
These aren't counter-terrorism operations against armed militants. The raids focused on several locations in downtown LA and its immediate surroundings, including two Home Depot stores in the Westlake District of Los Angeles, a doughnut shop and the clothing wholesaler, Ambiance Apparel in the Fashion District, targeting workers going about their daily lives.
The military equipment matches the unprecedented scale. ICE's Special Response Teams use "BearCat tracked vehicles, long guns and tactical vests" while federal agents deploy in military armored vehicles wearing camouflage gear and brandishing heavy rifles, using flash-bang grenades, pepper grenades and teargas against civilians. BearCats are Mine-Resistant Ambush Protected vehicles designed for Iraq and Afghanistan, now deployed against people washing cars and waiting for buses in American neighborhoods.
But the most disturbing aspect is that these heavily armed operatives refuse to identify themselves. In Pasadena, when a member of the public tried photographing the license plate of an unmarked vehicle, "an agent got out of the vehicle and pointed what appeared to be a gun at the person photographing" while witnesses yelled "Don't shoot! Don't shoot!" In Charlottesville, Virginia, three plainclothes ICE agents detained two men at a courthouse while "one wore a balaclava to cover his face." When citizens and elected officials demanded accountability, ICE threatened to prosecute "two women who attempted to question and identify the agents at the scene."
When real agents refuse to identify themselves and respond with hostility to accountability requests, they create perfect cover for criminal exploitation. In Philadelphia, a man "posing as an ICE agent" committed armed robbery, screaming "Immigration" before zip-tying a woman for over two hours and stealing $1,000, then fleeing "in a white Ford van, similar to the unmarked white vans used by real ICE agents during immigration raids." In South Carolina, Sean Michael-Emmrich Johnson, 33, was charged with kidnapping and impersonating a police officer after allegedly detaining a group of Latino men along a Charleston County road. As journalist Ryan Grim noted, "this type of crime is now possible because ICE agents insist on going around like masked thugs." When legitimate operations are indistinguishable from criminal activity, the entire system breaks down.
Why This Violates Every Principle of American Law Enforcement
When armed operatives can exercise government power while refusing to identify themselves, they've crossed the line from legitimate law enforcement into extrajudicial force. While there is currently no federal law requiring officers to identify themselves when asked, this absence of legal protection makes the situation even more dangerous for democratic accountability.
The Fourth Amendment protects against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Fifth Amendment guarantees due process, and the Fourteenth Amendment ensures equal protection under law for all persons within U.S. borders. When masked operatives refuse identification while detaining people, they violate the most fundamental requirements of constitutional law enforcement.
The Posse Comitatus Act of 1878 specifically prohibits federal military forces from conducting domestic law enforcement. The Act states that "Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army, the Navy, the Marine Corps, the Air Force, or the Space Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both." While National Guard troops can be federalized under specific circumstances, using active-duty Marines and thousands of troops for immigration enforcement against civilian populations crosses constitutional lines that have protected American democracy for nearly 150 years. A federal judge has held hearings over whether the Trump administration's deployment of troops to Los Angeles violates the Posse Comitatus Act, which prohibits troops from conducting civilian law enforcement on U.S. soil.
Professional law enforcement ethics require clear identification, adherence to due process, proportional response to actual threats, and transparency in operations. When masked operatives deploy overwhelming military force against unarmed civilians while refusing basic accountability, they've abandoned every principle that distinguishes legitimate law enforcement from organized violence.
Why This Is Domestic Terrorism
This is domestic terrorism, plain and simple. Above all else, we don't know who these people are.
These masked, heavily armed operatives refuse to provide the most basic identification that distinguishes legitimate law enforcement from criminal gangs. When armed men won't prove they have legal authority to detain people, they've crossed the line from law enforcement into extrajudicial abduction.
Using Timothy Snyder's framework from On Tyranny, we are witnessing the systematic deployment of violence and intimidation against civilian populations to achieve political aims--the textbook definition of terrorism. The tactics are deliberately designed to terrorize: unknown operatives refusing identification, overwhelming military force against unarmed civilians, operations at everyday locations like bus stops and workplaces where any American resident might be present.
The targeting reveals the arbitrary nature of the terror. NBC News found that just 52% of arrests in a single day were considered "criminal arrests"--meaning nearly half of people detained had no criminal conviction other than crossing the border illegally. People are being detained for "looking like someone we're looking for." The randomness is the point. When anyone with brown skin becomes a potential target, it terrorizes entire communities into compliance. Families stop sending children to school, workers don't go to their jobs, people avoid public transportation--exactly the community-wide fear that terrorism is designed to create.
But perhaps most telling is what happens when anyone attempts to hold them accountable. Citizens trying to photograph license plates have had guns pointed at them. ICE has threatened to prosecute women who asked agents to identify themselves. Even elected officials face arrest for demanding accountability--NYC Comptroller Brad Lander was arrested by masked agents while asking to see warrants, and Senator Alex Padilla was forcibly removed after attempting to ask questions at a Homeland Security news conference.
When unidentified armed men draw weapons on people for taking photographs, arrest elected officials for asking questions, and threaten prosecution for demanding identification, they've abandoned any pretense of legitimate authority. They're operating as an occupying force hostile to democratic oversight and constitutional rights.
The Threat to Every American
This threatens every American. When the distinction between government agents and criminal organizations disappears, when military force replaces civilian law enforcement, when accountability becomes grounds for arrest, democracy itself is under attack. As Snyder warns in On Tyranny, "The collapse of the rule of law begins with the normalization of the exceptional."
We are past normalization. We have reached the exceptional. Masked paramilitaries with unknown authority are conducting military operations against American civilian populations while responding to demands for accountability with violence and arrest. This isn't immigration enforcement--it's the systematic use of terror to destroy democratic governance.
The precedent being established extends far beyond immigration. When armed agents can detain people without identifying themselves or providing legal justification, they've created a toolkit that can be applied to any population deemed problematic. Today's "immigration enforcement" becomes tomorrow's mechanism for suppressing dissent, protest, or political opposition.
Lessons from On Tyranny
In On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century, Timothy Snyder provides practical guidance for resisting authoritarianism. These lessons serve as our guide through this critical moment:
Note to the reader: Up to this point, we have used the 20 lessons to learn how to identify authoritarian overreach. Starting with this post, and in following posts, we are making a shift. We will now focus on how to use these lessons to resist. Also note that resistance is always guided by Lesson 20: Be as courageous as you can. We are not all positioned to take each of these actions, but consider what of these you can given your circumstances. Know that for every action of resistance you engage in, you are also representing those who are not able to stand up due to vulnerability, ability, or means.
Lesson 1: Do not obey in advance. Anticipatory obedience teaches authorities what is possible. When communities pre-emptively avoid public spaces, stop sending children to school, or curtail normal activities out of fear, they're normalizing the terror these operations are designed to create. How to resist: Continue your normal routines when safe to do so. Send children to school, use public transportation, shop at targeted businesses, and maintain community activities. Your visible presence in public spaces demonstrates that terror tactics have not succeeded in controlling community life.
Lesson 6: Be wary of paramilitaries. Armed groups that operate outside normal legal structures pose fundamental threats to democracy. The use of military equipment and tactics against civilian populations, combined with refusal to identify authority, creates the exact conditions Snyder warns against. How to resist: Document and report paramilitary activity. Support journalism that investigates and exposes these operations. Demand that elected officials investigate the legal authority and oversight mechanisms for these forces.
Lesson 10: Believe in truth. Authoritarian movements attack the very concept of verifiable truth. When official sources provide conflicting information about operations or refuse to provide information at all, they're attacking citizens' ability to understand reality. How to resist: Support independent journalism and documentation efforts. Verify information through multiple sources. Share factual information and primary source documentation. Resist misinformation while demanding transparency from authorities.
Lesson 11: Investigate. Figure out what is going on. The refusal of operatives to identify themselves makes investigation essential for understanding who has authority and under what legal framework they're operating. How to resist: Research the legal authorities claimed for these operations. File Freedom of Information Act requests. Support investigative journalism. Ask questions at town halls and public meetings. Demand transparency from elected officials about cooperation with federal agencies.
Lesson 12: Make eye contact and small talk. Authoritarian movements depend on social atomization--breaking down human connections that create solidarity and mutual support. The terror tactics are designed to isolate communities and individuals. How to resist: Maintain human connections across community lines. Talk to neighbors, especially those who might be targeted. Create mutual aid networks. Show up for community events and maintain social solidarity.
These are not abstract principles--they are practical responses to the breakdown of democratic norms we are witnessing in real time.
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Sources
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Brennan Center for Justice. "The Posse Comitatus Act Explained." Brennan Center for Justice. https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/posse-comitatus-act-explained
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Common Dreams. "'What People Have Feared': ICE Impersonator Zip-Tied Woman and Stole $1,000." June 10, 2025. https://www.commondreams.org/philadelphia-immigration
HuffPost. "People Are Impersonating ICE Agents To Harass Immigrants And Commit Crimes, Police Say." February 7, 2025. https://www.yahoo.com/news/people-impersonating-ice-agents-harass-005631878.html
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