At least 30 mothers gathered in Portland, Oregon, on Saturday to form a barrier between federal agents who have descended on the city and protesters.
The women stood as part of a crowd of approximately 400 people in the city’s federal courthouse for hours, singing, “The feds are staying away! Moms are here! before federal agents fired tear gas and fired at the crowd, according to Buzzfeed News.
A crowd of around 400 has occupied both SW 3rd and SW Main.
Moms are singing, “The feds are staying away! Moms are here! in federal court.
All three fences are still up. pic.twitter.com/jhJ09NUxGW
– Lindsey Smith (she / she) (@ LindseyPSmith7) July 19, 2020
“It is about protecting the right of peaceful citizens to protest,” said Bev Barnum, a 35-year-old content vendor who organized the “Wall of Moms” rally.
Barnum told Buzzfeed that he was inspired to organize the protest with viral images of unidentified federal officials taking a Portlander to an unmarked vehicle.
“Mothers are often underrated,” Barnum wrote in a Facebook event post he created. “But we are stronger than we are credited with. So what do you say? Will you support me? Will you help me create a wall of mothers?”
She told Buzzfeed that she believed the appearance of the assistants would make federal forces reluctant to use harsh tactics against them and other protesters. “We wanted to look like we were going to Target, like normal people,” said Barnum.
Barnum added that despite the eventual use of tear gas, officials showed more restraint than they had toward protesters on other nights.
“We could tell by his body language. There were two federal officials in front of us who seemed to say, ‘We don’t want to shoot everyone,’ ”he said.
“These are black mothers who lose their children, husbands, brothers and friends every day,” Brenna Burnett, a 29-year-old business owner who also participated in the Wall of Moms, told BuzzFeed. “It’s about Black Lives Matter. It’s not about white women coming to save the day.”
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler (D) and Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum (D) have rejected the federal deployment of forces in the city, with Wheeler saying his presence is exacerbating the unrest and Rosenblum suing multiple agencies. federal officials present, accusing them of illegally arresting citizens without probable cause.
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