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Antifa Attacks Oregon Democratic Party Headquarters On Inauguration Day

Holly MatkinJanuary 21, 2021

Portland, OR – Antifa in Portland marked President Joe Biden’s Inauguration Day by attacking the Democratic Party of Oregon building and generally wreaking havoc throughout the downtown area Wednesday night.

Portland police were aware that a gathering at Revolution Hall was expected to take place that afternoon, and that organizers had discouraged attendees from live-streaming the event, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) said in a press release on Wednesday night.

“Similar rhetoric on fliers in the months preceding led to events that were punctuated by violence and destruction,” the PPB noted.

Several bicycle officers headed down to the park at about 2:45 p.m., where they wound up being surrounded by the growing crowd.

One member of the group managed to steal one of the officers’ bicycles.

Police fought back and recovered the bike and were trying to leave the area when members of the mob “began blocking” their path, the PPB said.

“Some officers had to push people away with their hands so they could leave,” the department noted.

Additional officers responded to the scene and confiscated a large knife and several long poles from members of the group before dropping a smoke canister to help police get out of the area safely, the PPB said.

A crowd of about 150 rioters marching down Southeast Stark threw objects at police and blocked traffic as officers used a loudspeaker to remind them to obey laws.

Several rioters carried signs with messages such as, “A new world from the ashes,” and “We are ungovernable,” KREM reported.

The mob continued to the Democratic Party of Oregon offices in the 200-block of Northeast 9th Avenue, where they proceeded to graffiti the building and smash out multiple windows, according to police.

Videos taken outside the vandalized building showed it had been tagged with the anarchy symbol and several “F—k Biden” messages.

Members of the group also shoved dumpsters out into the roadway and set one of them ablaze, the PPB said.

Police arrested eight rioters on charges ranging from resisting arrest and reckless burning to criminal mischief and interfering with a police officer.

Officer also seized a crowbar, Molotov cocktails, irritant spray and other such items during the chaos, KREM reported.

“This is not the first time our building has been vandalized during the past year – none of the prior incidents have deterred us from our important work to elect Democrats up and down the ballot, and this one will be no different,” the Democratic Party of Oregon said in a statement to KREM after the attack.

The mayhem reignited shortly after 5 p.m., when a group of demonstrators at Irving Park descended on the scene of a nearby rollover crash, the PPB said in a press release on Thursday morning.

Members of the group climbed on top of the car, while others appeared to be trying to help those inside the vehicle to safety.

“As officers arrived, in response to community calls for their service, people from the crowd shouted at them delaying their efforts to assist whomever was in the vehicle,” the PPB said. “Responding officers had to call for assistance just to make the scene safe.”

Backup officers responded and were able to push the mob back just enough to allow the initial officers to reach the occupants inside the crashed vehicle.

None of the people involved in the rollover appeared to be injured.

Approximately 75 people at the park then participated in a march that meandered through inner northeast Portland and wrapped up back at the park, police said.

Another group of about 150 people gathered at Elizabeth Caruthers Park a short while later and made its way to the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) offices on South Macadam Avenue armed with umbrellas, shields, and batons, according to the PPB.

Others picked up rocks along the way, police said.

Many members of the mob wore helmets and gas masks.

The mob began spray painting the ICE building immediately upon their arrival, prompting federal officers to come outside to move them away from the building.

Portland police arrested another seven rioters throughout the night for offenses including reckless endangering, carrying a concealed weapon, and assaulting a public safety officer, among others.

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Written by
Holly Matkin

Holly is a former probation and parole officer who is married to a sheriff’s deputy. She is a regular contributor to Signature Montana magazine, and has written feature articles for Distinctly Montana magazine.

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