Portland Police Declare Unlawful Assembly After Weekend Of Peaceful Protests

TOPLINE

Police in Portland, where peaceful protests took place this weekend after Trump-ordered federal agents retreated, declared an unlawful assembly early on Tuesday after a group of people tried to break into the city’s police union building.

KEY FACTS

Key background

The latest violence followed a weekend of peaceful protests in the Oregon city, after federal agents deployed by President Trump began leaving the city last Thursday in a phased withdrawal. The retreat followed an agreement struck between Oregon Gov. Kate Brown and the Trump administration, following weeks of rising tensions and violence between agents and protesters. The officers had been sent in by Trump at the start of July in a bid to quell sustained anti-racism protests in the city following the death of George Floyd, and to protect the federal courthouse, a flashpoint of protests. But the move was strongly condemned by local officials, including Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, who accused agents equipped in military-style gear of using excessive force and causing alarm by bundling arrested protesters into unmarked vehicles.

Further reading

Photos: Violence Subsides After Feds Exit Portland Protests (Forbes)

U.S., Oregon agree to phase out federal agents from Portland (Reuters)