Portland Oregon protest becomes Peaceful be now that Federal agents have been removed for the locations.
As news has been unveiling the violence between federal agents and protestors, as of lasst Wednesday the Trump administration and Oregon’s governor agreed for federal agents who had been deployed to ensure the courthouse protection would now draw back and be replaced by state troopers. The federal agents, who came from agencies including Border Patrol and Immigration and Customs Enforcement, were a flashpoint for conflict over the past two weeks.
Thursday marked the first night of protesting with no agents in site and mothers leading in the land activist were calm and ready to not focus in the Trump administration and orders but rather speak their voices so that they were heard standing for justice and not evoking violence.
As of Saturday the protests reported zero violence.
A mother spoke out about the impact of not having agents available in a time where people are fighting against official brutality.
Demetria Hester, one of the mothers, said now that protesters didn’t have to worry about federal agents they viewed as an illegitimate occupying force, they were once again focusing on racial justice and police brutality. Portland has seen the most consistent daily protests of any major city in the nation since George Floyd was killed by police in late May.
“I think they got the message,” Ms. Hester said of the federal authorities. “They know what we’re going to do. And we’re not going to back down.”
Another protestor who witnessed the difference in behavior and violence during the protest spoke out on the differentiation.
Robert Hesslink, 64 years old, said he had come to several Portland protests in recent weeks and had noticed a dramatic change in tone in the past few days.
“Tensions have come down a lot,” Mr. Hesslink said. “You could feel it.”
