Lately, the dramatic calls for the salvation of Portland protesters from the grips of federal security agents have filled Twitter and Facebook. A handful of video clips, seemingly, show a new clandestine federal presence that, without provocation, hauls away peaceful protestors, denying them their basic rights.
More succinctly, the underlying accusation is: Our tyrant president sent in his storm troopers, illegally commandeering the jurisdiction of the Portland Police—illegally detaining completely innocent protesters—while illegally concealing their own affiliations and identities.
I love it when people that never heard of Federalism before they saw “Hamilton” incorrectly cite the 10th Amendment. But anyway…I digress.
Could some of these fears actually be warranted? We don’t really know.
What we do know is they’re protecting federal buildings. Is that the federal governments jurisdiction? Sure would seem like it. And federal security has been there for years, occasionally confronting riots—long before the president commented about intervening in the current upheaval.
What about those being detained? Do we know if there’s probable cause? Not exactly, but in this environment there’s a lot of surveillance cameras guarding these places. If a crime is viewed and the suspect is walking around during an unlawful assembly—then I can see why they’d get picked-up.
What about an innocent who just happened to dress in Antifa all-black? What can I say? If you dress exactly like the known criminals wreaking havoc—you’ll probably be mistaken for one of those criminals. Next time grab the khakis.
Concerning the agents identifying themselves, I’ve read there is no such legal obligation federally. In saner circumstances most would probably be willing to give their information but in case you forgot—53 consecutive nights of riots detracts from the whole “business as usual” vibe. These officers are targets. Why would they waste time indulging some BLM Karen, making themselves increasingly vulnerable? You might think of it as the South Korea sequence in World War Z. You run out of the citadel—do your thing—and double-time it back before the herd is alerted.
Regardless, I don’t see why any G-man would risk the liability or the bad press to go to the trouble of dragging in some guy simply because of politics.
But all that aside, the most ridiculous misconception about this story is the notion that Portland’s protest dysfunction started last week with the feds. Although, there’s some steep competition in recent years for cities that most embrace criminal political expression with Oakland, Berkeley, New York, Chicago, and Seattle coming to mind—Portland is, by far, the heavy weight champion—the daddy long legs—the Big Kahuna of politically fueled criminal protest.
Maybe that’s because the oldest active Antifa chapter in America is Portland’s own—Rose City Antifa. Steeped in radicals as one of the whitest and most progressive cities in the U.S., some claim Portland’s Antifa, created in 2007, was a response to skinhead activity in the 1980’s. Of course, anyone around in 2007 would attribute it’s start to the leftist protest politics of the time, namely opposition to the Iraq war—not pushback on a glorified street gang from decades earlier.
In 2011, the Occupy Wall Street Movement took root and newer radical groups like Antifa cut their teeth. The Irag War demonstrations were largely global and only garnered 1,700 arrests. Occupy, however, was almost exclusively in the U.S. and would see 7,700 arrests. Largely without permits, its participants took over public spaces—parks, bridges, streets—fought with police—ruined local businesses—and never took a day off. Sound familiar? They promoted a level of mass vagrancy that still plaques many of our cities to this day. In Portland alone, the month Occupy started there were 40 arrests.
Occupy Wall Street continued until it was overtaken by Black Lives Matter. Both movements brought assaults, riots, and arrests. But for Portland neither would match the vitriol and criminality seen in the Anti-Trump protest age. The following is a list compiling all of the mostly illegal and often violent demonstrations and counter-protests that embroiled Portland from late 2016-2019:
WARNING: Some links contain bad language and violence.
—November 10-12, 2016—Election Protest—Two freeways blocked along with downtown streets. A man was fatally shot. Police were assaulted. 113-120 were arrested. 1.5 Million in damages and police overtime.
—November 14, 2016—Student Walkout—Bridges clogged. Verbal Altercations.
—November 21, 2016—Student Walkout Part 2—Three arrests of Portland Resistance leaders that are affiliated with Antifa.
—January 20, 2017—Inauguration Day Protest—Five arrested for disorderly conduct. One arrested on a weapons charge.
—January 25, 2017—Anti-Police Protest—14 arrests. An intersection and a train were blocked by Antifa.
—January 29-30, 2017—Travel Ban Protests—A man was beaten to the point of losing consciousness and was treated for a concussion at a local hospital. The train was shut down. Bags and traffic were diverted.
—February 20, 2017—Anti-Trump March—Seven arrests. Additionally, six juveniles cited including a 14 year-old. The charges ranged from disorderly conduct to resisting arrest.
— April 29, 2017—Free Speech March—Led by Patriot Prayer. The first pro-Trump demonstration. Inspired by the cancellation of a local bipartisan parade after an organizer received threats, as well as recent Antifa violence in Berkeley, CA. Like all such events, Antifa staged a counter protest. Three counter protestors were arrested for assaulting an officer, weapons, and criminal mischief.
—May 1, 2017—May Day—25 Arrests including disorderly conduct, resisting arrest, rioting, assaulting police, and arson.
—June 4, 2017—Trump Free Speech Rally—200 counter protestors detained for several hours. 14 arrested, mostly Antifa.
—June 30, 2017—Freedom March—No Arrests. Politico released an article that day entitled, “How Liberal Portland Became America’s Most Politically Violent City.”
—August 19, 2017—Solidarity With Charlottesville—Two bridges blocked. No permit.
—September 10, 2017—Patriot Prayer—Nine arrests
—October 11, 2017—ICE Protests—Six arrests. Blocked a bus.
—November 4, 2017—Refuse Fascism Rally—No arrests. First pro Trump led counter protest.
—June 3, 2018—Anti-Police Protest—Four arrests.
—June 30, 2018—Patriot Prayer Rally—Nine arrests. Four injuries.
—August 4 2018—Gibson For Senate Freedom March—Four arrests. Three Injuries.
—October 2018—Antifa and Black Lives Matter Block Portland Intersection—Altercations and vehicle damage. Police don’t intervene.
—November 17, 2018—Him Too Rally—Six arrests
—June 29, 2019—Multiple Events—Three arrests. Eight injuries including a local journalist that suffered brain damage.
—August 17, 2019— End Domestic Terrorism Rally—13 Arrests.
This three year period saw a few non-criminal protest days but they were rare. Almost uniformly, these demonstrations or their counter protests were unlawful at the start since proper permits were never obtained. Riot police were always present and necessary. The costs attributed to property damage, police overtime, incarceration, court appearances, medical treatment, and disaffected commerce ran well into the millions. With so much talk these days about defunding police, I’m sure Portland wishes they could get those funds back.
Most of these protests saw violence and nearly every time it started with Antifa and it’s allies. There wasn’t a single instance that an opposing demonstration wasn’t counter protested by Antifa, usually causing altercations. Whether the target was local law enforcement, the feds, journalists, or an opposition group—Rose City Antifa always found someone to fight with. They were, and still are, good at finding enemies—ICE, Homeland Security, Portland Police, the Mayor, the Police Chief, Patriot Prayer, corporations, skinheads from 40 years ago, or whatever president happens to be in office. There’s no shortage.
The current spate of largely criminal protests in Portland began May 29 and has continued every day since then. I can only imagine the number of assaults, the level of destruction, and the costs to the city.
Stepping back, its easy to see the big protest trends of the 21st Century. The Anti-War Movement led to Occupy Wall Street which led to Black Lives Matter which led to The Anti-Trump Movement which led back to Black Lives Matter. Not to mention the Womens Marches, Climate Change Protests, Gun Control rallies, and Immigration demonstrations that were squeezed in between. It almost seems like there’s a contrived effort to apply constant protest pressure on our country.
Regardless, its clear that nearly a decade of radical tactics, refined by Portland’s extreme political environment, have infinitely more to do with the city’s political dysfunction than a handful of feds that went on the offensive—just last week.
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