Dear Councilmember Brooke Pinto,

We are parents and caregivers of children in DCPS schools as well as concerned neighbors and community members. We are writing to you specifically because of your role on the Council as the Chairwoman of the Committee on the Judiciary and Public Safety.

Several recent events outside elementary schools have highlighted the intensely problematic ongoing presence of armed federal agents near schools and in residential areas. We are outraged and alarmed by the presence of armed National Guard soldiers and federal law enforcement agents congregating and patrolling outside many of our schools and recreation centers and in residential areas, including:

- The use of Wheatley Education Campus and Joseph H. Cole Recreation Center’s parking lot as a staging area for National Guard and federal law enforcement patrols in mid-August 2026;
- Continued daily patrols, both on foot and in unmarked vehicles, of armed National Guard troops and federal agents in close proximity to the Wheatley Education Campus since mid-August;
- Foot patrols of armed National Guard troops and federal agents accompanied by a low-circling National Park Police helicopter around Bruce-Monroe Elementary School at Park View on September 17, 2026; and
- Foot patrols of armed National Guard troops outside Harriet Tubman Elementary School on September 23, 2026.

Please see attached photos and links to news coverage of the incidents described above.

We know from talking to our children that having patrols of uniformed soldiers with military weapons and armed federal enforcement agents leads many of our kids to be fearful and distracted from learning. Children lack the frame of reference to understand the purpose and degrees of risk that their presence represents. Their imaginations are vivid, and without proper context, the presence of armed forces around can be experienced as distraction as best and can also translate to trauma. Child psychologists have found that childhood trauma can cause long-term harm to development.

As parents and caregivers, we cannot accept this wasteful and unnecessary use of law enforcement resources that we know is creating more fear for our children and risk of violence in our communities instead of more safety.

We also are deeply concerned by the alarming incidents of deadly force used by ICE, Border Patrol, and other federal law enforcement agencies in the last 12 months, including here in DC. These troops and agents have not trained to patrol residential neighborhoods and around school or to interact with children. We have seen federal agents swinging large-capacity weapons in front of children, interacting inappropriately with children, and applying force when they should have de-escalated.

In addition to community mistrust, more immediate and serious harm has resulted, as evidenced by multiple shootings at unarmed civilians and even armed assault among their ranks—the latter by the same Georgia National Guard troops currently patrolling in Trinidad and surrounding neighborhoods.

We cannot allow our children to become desensitized to the regular presence of armed soldiers and agents at their schools and playgrounds. We are fearful for the safety of our children and neighbors. Allowing these armed patrols near our schools invites unthinkable catastrophe.

We are also DC taxpayers outraged by the exorbitant cost of these deployments. $3,000,000.00 per day is an outrageous amount of money that would be much better spent to help our kids with more books, teachers, medicine, and food, especially when growing numbers of DC families are going hungry.

We are calling on you to:

1) Within the next 30 days, hold a Council hearing on the issue of National Guard and federal agent patrols and presence on and near school grounds; and

2) Within the next 10 days, meet with a delegation of parents from our schools.

We look forward to hearing from you about this urgent matter by Friday, October 2, 2026.

Thank you,

Attachments

Photographs and News Coverage of the Occupation at Wheatley, Bruce Monroe, and Harriet Tubman

Continued daily patrols, both on foot and in unmarked vehicles, of armed National Guard troops and federal agents, sometimes accompanying MPD, in close proximity to the Wheatley Education Campus, August 14, 2026 - Present

WUSA9: National Guard troops target DC's Trinidad neighborhood, but residents push back

FOX5: Rally in DC calls for National Guard to stay away from schools

Univision: Protestan en Washington DC por operativos federales y de la Guardia Nacional cerca de escuelas

Atlanta Journal Constitution: One year later: More than 500 Georgia National Guard troops remain in D.C.

Foot patrols of armed National Guard troops and federal agents accompanied by a low-circling National Park Police helicopter around Bruce-Monroe Elementary School at Park View on September 17, 2026

The Washington Sun: Neighbors Are Upset Over Federal Agents’ Presence at a D.C. School

PoPville: "Helicopter Circling Park View?"

Foot patrols of armed National Guard troops outside Harriet Tubman Elementary School on September 23, 2026