Violence Breaks Out at Patriot Prayer “Law and Order March” in Portland, Oregon

Brawl and street violence between Antifa and right-wing group ‘Patriot Prayer’ occurred on Saturday October 13, 2018 in downtown Portland.

At a demonstration and counter-demonstration that occurred on Saturday October 13, 2018, Portland Police Bureau reported seeing protest and counter-protest participants outfitted with hard knuckle gloves, knives and firearms earlier in the evening. Police said they made no arrests Saturday night, but that investigation is ongoing.

The march by ‘Patriot Prayer’ advocated replacing Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, who previously ordered Portland police officers to ‘stand down’ in the wake of the police shooting and killing of Patrick Kimmons, a 27-year-old black man. The “stand down” order allowed activists groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter to riot and control parts of Portland’s downtown business district.

The “stand down” was documented in video posted by journalist Andy C. Ngo showing protesters, including members of Antifa and Black Lives Matter, blocking an intersection and attempting to direct traffic while officers on motorcycles watched from a block away. At one point, the activists chased down and attacked 74-year-old Kent Houser after he made a right turn against their ‘orders’. Protesters hit on his silver Lexus, causing damage and breaking a window valued at thousands of dollars.

Concurrently Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler insisted that “motorists should feel completely safe coming into downtown Portland.”

Conflict Key Points
People were assaulted and treated by paramedics

No paramedic transports reported

Weapons possession by demonstrators observed by police

Police deployed non-lethal munitions

There were no arrests

On Saturday, October 13, 2018, a demonstration, counter-demonstration and an unpermitted march occurred in Downtown Portland. The protest events and march were held on sidewalks and roadways in the Downtown Portland area over the course of approximately three hours, according to Portland Police Department.

Prior to the start of the event, liaison officers attempted to communicate with both groups to help facilitate a safe environment for everyone involved.

During today’s event, officers observed people in possession of hard-knuckled gloves, firearms, batons and knives. Officers also observed people use pepper spray. At this time, there are no reports of any weapons that were seized during today’s demonstration, counter-demonstration and march.

The Police Bureau is aware that people were assaulted during today’s demonstration at an incident in the 400 block of Southwest Washington Street. On scene Portland Fire and Rescue emergency medical technicians provided emergency medical aid to four people during the march. However, the Police Bureau is unaware of anyone being transported by ambulance to area hospitals with injuries as a result of the assaults.

At this time, the Police Bureau is aware that the following riot control agents and less lethal impact munitions were used by officers in response to an assault in progress, including 40 mm Marking Foam Rounds and FN303 Less Lethal Rounds.

Portland police urge that anyone with information about criminal activity during Saturday’s events contact the Portland Police Bureau non-emergency line at 503-823-3333.

In the YouTube comments section connected to the video above, some people criticized the police for “taking orders from the Portland Mayor” or calling them “good little leftist city puppets siding with the garbage left, orders from the higher ups.”

“Nice how the Antifa run behind the cops, who cover their retreat with pepper balls. I wouldn`t want to live in these cities where cops and left-wing terrorists are on the same team.”

— rider6500

Activities in Portland involving the Patriot Prayer group go back at least to Spring 2017. In May 2017, Patriot Prayer organized the attendance of a dozen “antifa watchers” at a protest at a grocery liquidator in southeast Portland. Interviewed by The Oregonian, Patriot Prayer organizer Joey Gibson said the group’s goal was to watch the protest and report any property damage. Gibson also said that he attended the protest “to start conversations”. The Seattle Times and The Washington Post have described Patriot Prayer as a “pro-Trump group.

As of Sunday October 14, 2018 the Patriot Prayer group was LIKED by 15,290 people.

Highlights of the FLASH march for law and order in Portland posted on Facebook by Patriot Prayer: “100’s of people mobilize with less then (sic) 24 hour notice to stand against the mayor of PORTLAND.”

The Antifa movement is a conglomeration of left wing autonomous, self-styled anti-fascist militant groups in the United States. The principal feature of antifa groups is their use of direct action, harassing those whom they identify as fascists, racists or right wing extremists. Conflicts involving Antifa and right-wing groups occur both online and in real life.

Antifa groups members engage in varied protest tactics, which include digital activism, property damage and physical violence. Antifa members tend to be anti-capitalist and they are predominantly far-left and militant left, attracting characters that are anarchists, communists and socialists. The stated focus is on fighting far-right and white supremacist ideologies directly on the streets, rather than politically or with civil discourse.

Modern antifa politics can be traced to opposition to the infiltration of Britain’s punk scene by white power skinheads in the 1970s and 1980s, and the emergence of neo-Nazism in Germany following the fall of the Berlin Wall. In Germany, young leftists, including anarchists and punk fans, renewed the practice of street-level anti-fascism.

Critics of Antifa in the second decade of the 21st Century argue that they have created their own new fascism with an echo chamber of their own ideology — fighting people on the streets and generating protests at colleges and universities that prevent public speaking events offered by speakers that oppose their leftist ideology.

Video showing apparent Antifa member down and getting head-stomped once before an apparent Patriot Prayer advocate restrains others from acting out with continuous head-stomping, and shouting “Let him go.”

 OCT 13 POLICE TWEETS … 
















 NEWS COVERAGE … 

OREGON LIVE | Bear spray, bloody brawls at Patriot Prayer ‘law and order’ march in Portland

Washington Times | Portland mayor stands by decision to allow antifa to block traffic, hassle motorists