Authorities declared a riot early Sunday in Portland, Oregon, where protesters breached a fence surrounding the city’s federal court building, where US agents were stationed.
Police described via Twitter the “violent behavior of people in the center” as creating a “serious risk of public alarm.” Police demanded that people leave the area surrounding the courthouse around 1:20 a.m. and said that those who do not adhere can be arrested or subjected to tear gas and impact weapons.
At 1:40 am, federal officials and Portland police could be seen in the streets surrounding the courthouse, trying to clear the area and deploying tear gas.
Protesters remained on the streets beyond 2.30am, forming lines through intersections and holding makeshift shields, while police patrolled and closed blocks adjacent to the area. Multiple arrests were made, but it was not immediately clear how many.
In the hours leading up to the riot declaration, thousands of people gathered in the city for another night of protests as protests over the murder of George Floyd and the presence of federal agents dispatched by Donald Trump showed no signs of diminishing.
Crowds began marching towards the city’s federal court around 9:15 pm, some marching from five miles away. A large group of protesters in the North Portland neighborhood marched through the police compound there, which was cordoned off and had officers with riot gear standing outside the building.
Protesters stopped in front of a downtown hotel where federal agents are staying, chanting “The feds are going home” and yelling the names of blacks killed by police. As protesters marched through the streets, the Portland Police Office (PPB) posted on social media so that people do not walk or block the street, as they may be subject to charges such as disorderly conduct and interference with peace officers .
Hundreds of people crossed the steel bridge around 11 p.m. to reach the courthouse, and found thousands of federal agents.
The fence surrounding the building had flowers and banners hanging when officers left the courthouse to inspect it. They encountered fireworks fired over the fence. Federal agents threw tear gas canisters into the crowd, as people ran to the feathers, picked up some of the cans, and threw them back onto the fence.
When some protesters tried to cut the fence with power tools, they squirted pepper spray at the crowd.
At the nearby Justice Center, images and words were projected onto the building, including “Keep fighting. Keep pushing. “
During the protests the night before, federal agents repeatedly fired tear gas to dissolve the rowdy protests that continued into Saturday. Authorities said six federal officials were injured and one person was arrested.
Demonstrations have taken place in the largest city in Oregon every night since Floyd was killed in Minneapolis in May. Trump said he sent federal agents to Portland to stop the riots, but state and local authorities say they are making the situation worse.
There were protests in favor of police reform and against the growing presence of the federal police in cities across the country on Saturday. In Seattle, the police declared riots after large protests and deployed sudden explosions and pepper spray. Authorities made more than 40 arrests and said 21 officers suffered mostly minor injuries.
Chuck Lovell, the Portland Police Chief, released a video message on social media Saturday night calling for peace.
“Across the country, people are committing violence, supposedly in support of Portland,” Lovell said. “If you want to support Portland, stop the violence, work for peace. Portland police officers and law enforcement facilities have been threatened.
“Now more than ever, the Portland Police need your support. We want to be with you in the community and work on the real relationships that will create change. We want to go back to the critical problems that have been kidnapped by people who commit crimes under cover of the crowd. ”
Late Friday, a federal judge denied a request by the Oregon attorney general to restrict the actions of the federal police.
The Federal Protection Service had declared the meeting in Portland to begin an illegal assembly Friday night. Harry Fones, a Homeland Security spokesman, said at a news conference on Saturday afternoon that some people launched large fireworks, launched hard projectiles and used power tools to damage property.
Craig Gabriel, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon, said that of the six federal officials who were injured, one suffered a concussion and another was taken to the hospital from burns.
He said a person was arrested for failing to comply with the orders. That person was later released without charge, bringing the total number of people arrested on or near court property from early July to 60.
