PORTLAND, Oregon. Wearing a ski helmet and goggles on her head, Allison Hyder said she had told family members that she planned to stand behind the protests in downtown Portland. But, in the early hours of Tuesday, the five-year-old grandmother found herself out front, crossing her arms with other mothers dressed in yellow.
Standing next to a herd of other protesters, she sang in front of the walled-in entrance of the federal court. Despite the fact that some in the crowd began to intrude on the wood attached to the building, leaving Ms. Hyder uneasy about where things were headed, she remained steadfast.
“I am the face of lawlessness,” Hyder said. “People in the US need to know that moms, grandmothers, and nurses are here in the middle of the night demanding rights for everyone.”
The protests that have shaken in Portland for 54 consecutive days have generated a complicated mix of emotions and complaints, and a series of people who are expressing them.
In a state with a deep history of racial exclusion laws and a strong tradition of protest, the Portland protests have persisted since the murder of George Floyd, even as Black Lives Matter protests have slowed in some parts of the country.
But some leaders of the black community, grateful for the recognition of the race, fear that what should be a moment for racial justice may be squandered by violence. Companies supporting change have been demoralized by the chaos the protests have caused. City Mayor Ted Wheeler, scorned by many of the protesters, has now been fighting for federal officials to leave them alone.
Amid the Gordian knot of grievances and escalations, most seem to agree on one thing: The combative deployment of camouflaged federal agents has only made matters worse.
President Trump, in pushing a public order message for his reelection campaign, has embraced a dark vision of Portland as a lawless place filled with people who “hate our country.” His administration’s crackdown has brought armed officers from a wide variety of federal agencies to the streets, where they have been shooting tear gas and pushing protesters into unmarked trucks.
The portrayal of the Portland President and the crackdown he has unleashed have angered protesters who see Trump trying to use the city riots as a political theater during an election year. They say she is forcing a federal police presence in a city that doesn’t want her, a city with a tradition of protest so rich that it helps another Republican president, George Bush reportedly referred to him as Little Beirut.
While protests have consumed parts of downtown overnight, much of the city has remained intact. During the day, boaters climb the Willamette River as joggers run along the trail alongside it. On Monday night, large groups of diners were eating in outdoor courtyards a few blocks from the county Justice Center, where protesters were gathering at night.
For protesters, the unusual deployment of the federal power president has provided even more compelling evidence that their fears about the rise of fascism in the United States are justified.
In the Portland area, activists aligned with the loosely organized group known as antifa have long denounced police militarization and a punishing criminal justice system, and have clashed with police in recent years. Protests for the past seven weeks developed a cycle of near-night conflict between protesters and local police, with officers reacting to objects thrown by protesters, and protesters expressing alarm at the use of tear gas that impacted peaceful people.
Reflecting a frequently heard refrain, Angel Almanza, 44, said a government can only repress people so much before they respond in kind.
“This has been an act of self-defense,” said Almanza.
The fighting on the streets intensified with the arrival of federal forces, which have relied heavily on tear gas, pistol-shot ammunition, and paintball-style batons.
Among the others concerned about federal crackdown was Joey Gibson, a far-right activist who has long fought with Portland antifa protesters. He said he found it somewhat scary to watch the video of an officer hitting a Navy veteran with a baton, and was concerned that the Trump administration would set a precedent that would encourage other presidents to adopt a more expansive use of federal forces.
“It is very concerning,” Gibson said.
On Tuesday morning, dozens of officers moved through the streets and sometimes threw people to the ground to stop them. When federal officials appeared to be trying to arrest a person, others in the crowd rushed to free the person.
Portland authorities have cited continuing problems with protesters, and police said Tuesday that a jewelry store had been looted.
The nightly protests have also alarmed businesses in the city center, which were first hit with widespread looting after Mr. Floyd’s death in Minneapolis on Memorial Day and have struggled to navigate the past weeks. Stacey Gibson, owner of a downtown Subway sandwich shop, said the store’s windows have been closed most of the time, which has helped reduce sales already limited by the coronavirus and related blockages.
Gibson said she was frustrated with a Police Department that said it cannot respond when there is a problem and with city leaders who have been unable to find a solution. She is also not optimistic about the future of her store.
“At this point, I’m just trying to figure out how to get out and minimize the damage,” Gibson said.
The protests after Floyd’s death drew thousands of people to the streets of Portland, creating powerful images of crowds lying face down on the Burnside Bridge in honor of Floyd.
While the numbers dwindled in the following weeks and Gov. Kate Brown expressed her belief that things were starting to cool, the crowd has increased in recent days, and protesters chanted “The Feds Are Going Home” and focused much of it. of his anger at the federal government. court building.
Demonstrations have continued to have a strong component of calls for racial justice, even on Monday night, when thousands chanted “Black Lives Matter” and young black activists led the predominantly white crowd in speeches and songs.
But some black leaders have been wary of lingering riots. Pastor JW Matt Hennessee, who has participated in protests and sees this as a hopeful time for racial reconciliation, said he is concerned that the disruptive elements of the protests may be pushing the focus away from racial justice.
“In many ways, it has been distracted from the early June message,” he said. He called the protesters to meet to discuss a way forward and help find a solution.
The mayor and governor have asked federal forces to leave to ease tensions and give the city room to resolve differences.
