A riot was declared in Portland just after midnight on Thursday morning after Mayor Ted Wheeler’s tense visit with protesters, where he was booed, told to resign, given a list of lawsuits and tear gas by federal agents.
His visit ended with his security details participating in a fight with protesters Wednesday night as they worked to get the mayor to safety, according to a report.
Previously, he moved with protesters to the fence outside federal court where he was at the front and received tear gas along with the crowd, according to New York Times correspondent Mike Baker.
Wheeler called the tear gas “an overreaction,” and told Baker that he saw nothing in the crowd that warranted the reaction by federal officials.
“This is not a de-escalation strategy,” he said. “This is a resounding urban war and the President is bringing it to this country and it must stop now.”
PORTLAND PROHIBITS POLICE WORK WITH FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT
When Wheeler left, some protesters following him attempted to press his security team once he had entered a building. Others threw water bottles and other shells at the glass door, according to Baker.
The Portland City Council approved new policies on Wednesday that immediately prohibits all members of the police office from working with the federal police and it prevents them from intentionally arresting or using force against journalists and legal observers.
Wheeler had joined protesters downtown earlier in the afternoon for a listening session in which he thanked them for opposing the “occupation” of the city by the Trump administration in the deployment of federal agents.
“I think what we will do tonight is the best we can do right now,” Wheeler told hundreds of people after a protester asked how to get federal officials out of town, according to KGW-TV. “Be here, be heard, be unified and be clear. We did not want them, we did not ask for them, they are not trained for what they are asked to do. And we want them to leave.”
Hundreds of Black Lives Matter protesters gather near the United States Courthouse Mark O. Hatfield on Tuesday, July 21, 2020 in Portland, Oregon (AP Photo / Noah Berger)
Wheeler, who has repeatedly said he opposes the deployment of federal officers in the city, was nearly drowned out by yelling and booing and called to resign, and was booed out loud when he told a protester that he did not support abolishing the police department. .
Then he addressed a much larger crowd from an elevated balcony, saying, “I am here tonight to be with you.” She received some applause when she sang “Black lives matter!” with the crowd
Some protesters also fired fireworks at the courthouse and attempted to tear down the fence erected outside.
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Wheeler, who is also the police commissioner, has been accused by some of failing to control the local police, which has used tear gas multiple times before federal agents arrived earlier this month in response to nearly two months of nightly protests. since George Floyd was assassinated. Others, including business leaders, have convicted Wheeler for failing to control the situation before federal agents arrived.
David Aaro of Fox News and Associated Press contributed to this report.
