Portland protests: Police declare riot as demonstrators break through court fence

Swell in support for protests from ‘walls’ of veterans, health workers, lawyers and others demanding withdrawal of federal troops

Police in Portland, Oregon, have declared a riot after protesters breached a fence surrounding a court building where federal officers have been stationed during ongoing protests against police brutality and the presence of militarised law enforcement.

A police statement condemned the “violent conduct” of the protesters as creating a “grave risk of public alarm” when a group pulled down a section of fencing around 1.20am on Sunday.

“Dozens of people in the crowd maintained this level of violence and tumultuous conduct and were either intentionally or recklessly creating a grave risk of public alarm,” the statement said.

A crowd of about 200 people had assembled outside the Portland Police Association office before moving to the federal courthouse. Police said: “Throughout the night some people in this crowd spent their time shaking the fence around the building, throwing rocks, bottles, and assorted debris over the fence, shining lasers through the fence, firing explosive fireworks into the area blocked by the fence, and using power tools to try to cut through the fence.”

Demonstrations in the northwestern city continued through early Sunday morning after thousands of people gathered for another night of protests in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis and other black Americans.

In a video message on Saturday, Portland’s chief of police, Chuck Lovell, claimed that across the US ”people are committing violence, supposedly in support of Portland”.

“If you want to support Portland then stop the violence, work for peace,” he said. “We want to be with you in the community and working on the real relationships that will create change. We want to get back to the critical issues that have been hijacked by people committing crimes under the cover of the crowds.”

The deployment of federal officers to American cities has renewed protests, with demands for their removal.

As Donald Trump commanded the officers to protect federal properties and statues, skirting constitutional barriers to policing, Portland saw a surge of Department of Homeland Security forces meeting demonstrators with a furious response.

Federal agents clash with protesters in Portland

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Federal agents clash with protesters in Portland

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  Federal officers arrest a protester after she crossed a fence line set up around the Mark O. Hatfield U.S. Courthouse on July 23, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. 

  Getty

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  A protester wears a mask and googles outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Oregon

  AP

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  Federal officers advance on demonstrators during a Black Lives Matter protest at the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Oregon

  AP

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  Activists address protesters as they take part in a rally against police brutality in Portland, Oregon

  AFP via Getty Images

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  Demonstrators in Portland, Oregon shield themselves with umbrellas as federal officers launch tear gas outside the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse during a Black Lives Matter protest on 24 July, 2020

  AP

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  Federal officers use chemical irritants and projectiles to disperse Black Lives Matter protesters near the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Oregon

  AP

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  A firework explodes as US federal agents and local police guard the Justice Center during clashes with Black Lives Matter protesters in downtown Portland, Oregon

  EPA

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  Black Lives Matter protesters shake fencing outside the Justice Center in downtown Portland, Oregon

  EPA

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  A federal officer sprays a demonstrator with a chemical irritant during a Black Lives Matter protest at the Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse in Portland, Oregon

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  Demonstrators march during a Black Lives Matter protest in Portland, Oregon

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  Black Lives Matter protesters in downtown Portland, Oregon

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  Members of the “Portland Mom Brigade” wave placards and shout slogans as they take part in a rally against police brutality in Portland, Oregon

  AFP via Getty Images

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  Activists hold up signs as they take part in a rally against police brutality in Portland, Oregon

  AFP via Getty Images

 

 

Portland officials have called for the president to move the federal forces out of the city.

While a federal court order has barred agents from targeting journalists and legal observers at demonstrations, another judge has rejected efforts by Oregon’s attorney general to restrict federal officers in the city.

“In the first place, although it involves allegations of harm done to protesters by law enforcement, no protester is a plaintiff here,” US district judge Michael Mosman said in his order on Friday. “In the second place, it is not seeking redress for any harm that has been done to protesters. Instead, it seeks an injunction against future conduct, which is also an extraordinary form of relief.”

Many protesters have equipped themselves with makeshift shields, umbrellas and face masks against a continuous barrage of teargas cannisters, pepper spray and other weapons fired by police.

“Walls” of organised groups of military veterans, teachers, health workers, lawyers in suits and ties, and mothers and fathers (equipped with leaf blowers to disperse clouds of teargas) have joined the demonstrations in support of the Black Lives Matter movement and demanding federal agents withdraw from the city.

Small groups have caused visible damage to buildings, let off fireworks, tossed water bottles and other objects, and lit small fires. Demonstrators argue that civil disobedience and damage to property have provoked a police response that is disproportionate to the action, underscoring the brutality that they are protesting against.

At least 60 people in Portland have been arrested by federal agents, and prosecutors are charging at least 46 people.

Protests against police brutality continued across the US on Saturday.

At least one man was killed in Austin, Texas, where a man driving near a protest fired several rounds from the window before speeding away, according to police. A suspect has been arrested.

Authorities in Seattle also declared a riot in the city, where at least 45 people were arrested after police fired flash grenades and rushed into crowds.