A 53-year-old Navy veteran went viral over the weekend after images of him confronting federal officials in Portland, Oregon appeared.
Christopher David, a member of the Marine Corps of Civil Engineers, told the Washington Post that after seeing officers rush a line of protesters and shoot down several, he led them directly, yelling “Why don’t you honor your oath to the Constitution?
In response, several officers pushed him, but he was able to keep his balance. Another officer hit David with his cane while one sprayed him in the face with an irritating chemical, after which he finally walked away, heading to a bank where a street doctor provided help, according to the Post. Later he found out that his right hand was broken.
Over the next few days, footage of the incident captured by Portland Tribune journalist Zane Sparling circulated on the Internet and social media.
Here is the longest version of the protester repeatedly beaten by federal police in Portland tonight pic.twitter.com/v9BljIkLK0
– Zane Sparling (@PDXzane) July 19, 2020
David, who said the event was his first protest, said the episode illustrated how many of the people who took to the streets of Portland and across the country are not seasoned activists, despite White House claims.
“We are just normal people,” he told the Post. “There was a whole group of pregnant mothers standing there linking their arms and they were gassed. You listen to people like [President] Trump says there are only a ton of crazy people in the liberal cities out there, but by no means. We are all normal people who think that what is happening is wrong. “
A group of mothers formed a “Mommy Wall” at the same protests, forming a barrier between officers and other protesters, before federal forces dispersed them with tear gas.
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