Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette
Federal crackdown on protests decried
Portland and Oregon officials say agents making bad situation worse
PORTLAND, Ore. — Federal agents dressed in camouflage and tactical gear have taken to the streets of Portland in unmarked vans, seizing and detaining protesters and unleashing tear gas.
Since their arrival with the goal of tamping down persistent unrest, federal officers have shot one protester in the head with an apparent impact munition, leaving the man with severe head injuries.
One of the people detained, Mark Pettibone, said in an interview that an unmarked vehicle stopped right in front of him about 2 a.m. Wednesday, and four people in camouflage jumped out. Given the lack of markings or identification, he had no idea who they were.
“One of the officers said, ‘ It’s OK; it’s OK,’ and just grabbed me and threw me into the van. Another officer pulled my beanie down, so I couldn’t see,” Pettibone said.
He said he was terrified and that at no point was he told why he was arrested or detained or what agency the officers were with. Pettibone said he was ultimately held for about two hours before being released.
On Thursday night and into Friday morning — the 50th straight day of demonstrations — a line of federal officers in gas masks walked down Portland’s Third Avenue. They filled downtown corridors with tear gas, which a federal judge has barred Portland police from using except in the case of a safety risk, and they also shot less-lethal munitions.
Mayor Ted Wheeler of Portland, who is also police
commissioner, said the federal response was “irresponsible” and asked for those deployed to stay inside federal buildings or leave the city. The Multnomah County sheriff, Mike Reese, called the federal response a “significant setback” in efforts to calm tensions.
Gov. Kate Brown called it a “blatant abuse of power by the federal government.”
But federal officials, starting with President Donald Trump, have continued to stake a claim to the city’s law and order. The acting Homeland Security secretary, Chad Wolf, arrived in the city Thursday, calling the protesters a “violent mob” of anarchists emboldened by a lack of local enforcement.
Portland’s protests began in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis, drawing thousands of people to the streets to denounce police violence and racial injustice. On some nights, protesters would blanket Burnside Bridge, each laying face down on the pavement for 8 minutes and 46 seconds in remembrance of Floyd.
Those mass demonstrations have waned, but hundreds of people have continued on, clashing with police almost nightly. They have set off fireworks, lit fires and attempted to create an autonomous zone similar to one that existed up Interstate 5 in Seattle.
The persistent unrest has frustrated city leaders, including Wheeler, who has often been a target of the ire. Some Black leaders in the community have also expressed disappointment, suggesting that the predominantly white protest crowd was seizing an opportunity and detracting from the vital efforts needed to reform policing.
City leaders have tried a variety of tactics to calm the tensions. Wheeler has pleaded for calm. The city’s police chief resigned, to be replaced with Chuck Lovell, who is Black. City commissioners have moved to cut some $16 million from the police budget.
But the protests have continued. Trump has taken an aggressive posture against demonstrations, vowing at one point to “dominate” protesters and mobilize federal agencies to operate in cities. Trump said last week that he had sent Homeland Security personnel to Portland because “the locals couldn’t handle it.”
The next day, video appeared to show one protester, Donavan La Bella, holding a sign across the street from the federal courthouse, being struck in the head by an impact munition, leading to a bloody scene on the street. His mother has told local media that he suffered skull fractures and needed surgery.
Members of Congress from Oregon have called for an investigation, and the U.S. attorney for the District of Oregon, Billy Williams, said the case had been referred to the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General for further investigation.
Portland’s protests began in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death in Minneapolis, drawing thousands of people to the streets to denounce police violence and racial injustice.