'America is gone': Tiny act of kindness illuminates stark new reality of Trump's DC

WASHINGTON — Just outside the newly unrolled yellow police tape that encloses Lafayette Square, the green seven-acre public park just north of the White House, a graying African American man bent down to leave a hot Potbelly sandwich and tall store-bought water for a younger white man who lay there, sleeping in the sun.

“Sir, I don’t mean to disturb you,” Michael — a 61-year-old Houston native — said as the man was roused.

“I brought you a sandwich and a drink.”

Michael walked away. Moments later, as Raw Story asked what prompted his act of kindness, the unhoused man sat up and enjoyed the sandwich.

"We're all human," Michael said. "It's a human lying on the street, hungry. It's terrible."

Hunger may remain “terrible” to many Americans, but to President Donald Trump, the homeless themselves need to be, at the very least, hidden far from the public eye.

“The Homeless have to move out, IMMEDIATELY,” the president thumbed on social media over the weekend. “We will give you places to stay, but FAR from the Capital.”

'Crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor'

Throughout much of the nation’s capital — especially the hot spots frequented by lobbyists, politicians and tourists — you can hardly tell that earlier this week Trump took control of the Washington Metropolitan Police Department and deployed National Guard troops.

Trump’s promise to “rescue” the nation's capital from “crime, bloodshed, bedlam and squalor” is far from the reality of the city streets.

Murders have dropped 34% this year, compared to 2024.

In May, homelessness data from the District’s Department of Human Services (DHS) showed a “9% decrease from 2024, including an 18.1% decrease among families and a 4.5% decrease among unaccompanied individuals.”

District officials say the latest numbers reveal a 19% decrease from its last count in 2020, before COVID-19 shuttered much of the nation.

Community Partnership, a local advocacy group, says an estimated 798 individuals sleep on D.C. streets any given evening.

Michael, the man who helped the sleeping man in Lafayette Square, said he was in town from Houston, visiting his daughter who just left the Navy and started "one of the coolest jobs" in national security.

Raw Story asked: "What do you think about President Trump coming through and saying, like, 'You don't have a home but you can't stay here'?"

"President Trump is a dictator,” Michael said. “I think that America is gone the way we knew it. It will never come back.

"I think this is martial law with a different name on it. What's the definition of a martial law? It's when the government takes over the functions of the state, and that's exactly what happened yesterday. In detail.”

Eight months into his second term, Trump deployed the National Guard in Los Angeles — ostensibly to deal with protests — and now Washington, despite howls from local and state leaders.

To Michael, it’s just the beginning.

"They're not just here. It's going to be in every state,” he said. “It's clear to me. It's clear to me."

‘Just doing my part’

Washington may be getting its Trumpian makeover, but Michael says his goal will remain to never forget the least of us, especially those suffering homelessness.

"Just doing my part, man,” Michael said. “Nothing special."

"That is special," Raw Story pressed.

"Nothing special.“

Michael shared that he'd had experiences with homelessness himself. “That's why I didn't want to wake him up," he said.

“But when you wake up, there you go. [Meal] right there."