A Charles Sturt University political expert has helped break down the political processes and what they might mean amid significant community unrest.

Professor in Political Science in the Charles Sturt School of Social Work and Arts Dominic O’Sullivan, who is also a member of the Yindymarra Nguluway, said the best place to start was to look at the government’s basic structure.

“There are three tiers - Los Angeles City Council, the State of California and the federal government - and they are certainly not in alignment in their thinking on how to respond to these protests,” Professor O’Sullivan said.

As part of the Trump Administration’s mass deportation policy, federal officials reportedly came into Los Angeles, targeting people they thought might be illegal immigrants.

“In one case, they reported California Governor Gavin Newsom saying that an American citizen who was nine-months pregnant was arrested,” he said.

“In another instance, a four-year-old girl was taken because of the indiscriminate nature of these things.”

Despite the rhetoric and intended purpose of the policy, Professor O’Sullivan said there had been no visible effort to specifically target violent criminals or illegal immigrants acting unlawfully in any way.

“It was this nature of the raids that gave rise to what were initially peaceful protests,” he said.

“The sense of panic incited by the federal government escalated things as people didn’t know if their family would be - or had been - arrested or taken from them. And this in itself is all  part of a strategy to incite fear.”

Professor O’Sullivan explained that peaceful protests are a democratic right.

“Protesting is a proper form of political expression, so I think the moment the Trump Administration brought in the National Guard and said it would also bring in the United States Marines to allegedly ‘keep order’, it was an imposing threat making people feel as though that right to political expression had been taken away,” he said.

“Trump has said it was necessary to avoid protesters burning the place down but that’s simply not true.

“It’s pure provocation. The State of California is used to peaceful protests, the Los Angeles City police department is equipped to manage these in a way that protects public safety.”

The interference by the federal level of government was yet another sign of unrest, according to Professor O’Sullivan.

“One characteristic of the US democracy, as we have in Australia, is a distinction between powers of the federal and state governments,” he said.

“California’s argument is that the federal government’s actions have intruded upon its sovereignty.”

As an attempt to enforce their own safety measures amid increasing unrest and violence, the Los Angeles Mayor supported an 8pm-to-6am curfew to stop vandalism and looting.

“This could be said to be a fair restriction of political expression, in that people still have other reasonable time frames to carry out their protests and make statements,” Professor  O’Sullivan said.

“It’s not treating violence with violence, as is bringing in military assistance.

“Having said that, curfews shouldn’t be imposed lightly, but it is a broader public safety measure in this case, and there are various exemptions for people such as emergency services and journalists, among others.”

Professor O’Sullivan said another distinguishing characteristic between the Australian Government and the US Government’s current tactic was the involvement of the military in domestic political matters, including the enforcement of this curfew.

“There is television footage from a few years ago where the Australian Defence Minister at the time was making an announcement on a military matter at a press conference and was asked an obviously political question,” Professor O’Sullivan explained.

“The Chief of Defence interrupted and said they would leave while those questions were answered as a clear statement that they would not involve themselves in political contest.

“So that distinction is taken very seriously, whereas in the US at the moment, Trump is really using the Marines and National Guard for political purposes.”

At this stage, about 4,000 National Guard troops and 700 Marines are expected to remain in Los Angeles for 60 days, according to the US Defense Secretary.

“Even in the last few days, Trump delivered a speech at a military base effectively turning the visit into a political rally,” Professor O’Sullivan said.

“These are things we associate more with authoritarian regimes, dictatorships and fascist regimes – not what is otherwise considered a fairly mature, respected democracy.”

This military involvement is also impacting on another key element of what makes a democracy – media freedoms.

Professor O’Sullivan said the abuse of media freedom during these protests has been broadcast across the world.

“An Australian reporter was shown on camera to have been shot by US authorities with a rubber bullet while actively reporting on the protests, as she is entitled to do,” he said.

“It was suggested that the journalist was targeted, the footage showing it did not look to be an accident.

“It can be assumed she was targeted because she was doing a job that the Trump administration decided it did not want to be done.

“When media freedoms are curbed either by law or intimidation or force, that is a sure sign of democracy failing.”

While Professor O’Sullivan said it is safe to say the US democracy is fragile and under threat, the difficult part is defining when a state is no longer a democracy.

“Democracy is a broad and evolving concept and does adapt differently according to local cultures and histories,” he said.

“So for one authority to say it’s no longer a democracy is not something that will happen.

“However, we can say there is a broad consensus that Trump is undermining, or certainly testing it.”