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The rapper Doechii accepted the BET award for best female hip-hop artist on Monday night, but instead of using her acceptance speech as a victory lap, she criticized President Trump for deploying the military against protesters in Los Angeles.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere are ruthless attacks that are creating fear and chaos in our communities in the name of law and order,\u201d Doechii said, pointing to ongoing protests<\/a> over Mr. Trump\u2019s immigration policies. \u201cTrump is using military forces to stop a protest.\u201d The 25th Annual BET Awards were held downtown at the Peacock Theater.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n The protests began on Friday<\/a> when federal agents searched the city\u2019s garment district for workers whom they suspected were undocumented immigrants. The action was part of the Trump administration\u2019s new focus on raiding workplaces.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Demonstrations continued over the weekend. Though mostly peaceful, there have been scattered protests that became violent, prompting the authorities to make about 150 arrests and in some cases to use tear gas and crowd-control munitions against protesters. Mr. Trump, calling the protesters \u201cinsurrectionists,\u201d mobilized the National Guard, a step Gov. Gavin Newsom has said was \u201cpurposefully inflammatory\u201d and intended to create a spectacle.<\/p>\n By Monday, the protests had turned calmer, but Mr. Trump doubled the number of deployed California Guard troops to 4,000 and ordered a battalion of 700 Marines to the city.<\/p>\n Several hours before the awards ceremony began, a spokesman for BET said the network was working with the Los Angeles Police Department and monitoring the situation for safety reasons, CNN reported<\/a>. The show went on despite the administration\u2019s escalation of the federal response to the demonstrations.<\/p>\n Doechii, who beat out Cardi B, Doja Cat, GloRilla, Latto, Megan Thee Stallion, Nicki Minaj, Rapsody and Sexyy Red, continued her acceptance speech by asking the audience to consider why the government would deploy the military against its people who exercise their constitutional right to protest. She also criticized the Trump administration\u2019s raids on workplaces and aggressive deportation policies.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are being swept up and torn from their families, and I feel it\u2019s my responsibility as an artist to use this moment to speak up for all oppressed people, for Black people, for Latino people, for trans people, for the people in Gaza,\u201d she said. \u201cWe all deserve to live in hope and not in fear, and I hope we stand together, my brothers and my sisters, against hate, and we protest against it.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n Her speech drew applause from the audience and was in stark contrast to the Tony Awards<\/a> on Sunday night, where Mr. Trump was barely mentioned \u2014 an unexpected turn for a ceremony that often features more political commentary from its winners and presenters.<\/p>\n Doechii, who over the last year has experienced a meteoric rise to the top of hip-hop, in February became the third woman<\/a> to win a Grammy for best rap album, for \u201cAlligator Bites Never Heal.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n