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Soon after President Trump urged Portland to “bring in” the National Guard over ongoing unrest, local reports indicate that the protests in the Oregon city seem to have shifted out of the downtown area.
The “main action” in Portland has apparently now drifted out of the downtown portion of the city, which has been besieged by anarchists for weeks, and is now unfolding in neighborhoods just outside the city, the Oregonian reported. Residents have become concerned enough about the shift to take to social media and other platforms to voice their frustration and worry.
Normally quiet residential neighborhoods have begun to see protests drift onto their streets as police and crowds of demonstrators have made an appearance after nearly 80 consecutive nights of protests in the city’s downtown.
Residents have taken to online platforms like Reddit and Facebook to express their concerns, as one did from the Kenton area where a standoff between police and demonstrators went on past midnight when protesters built a makeshift barricade.
In a Reddit post called “Leave Kenton Alone!” one person wrote: “Lots of people worked hard to make our little neighborhood pleasant and to help the local businesses stay open.”
“Now it’s trashed,” the user added. “This was not a BLM protest, this was a tantrum by a bunch of entitled kids.”
The incident reportedly caused damage to a dumpster at a black-owned business, Po’Shine’s, according to The Oregonian.
“What a dumpster has to do with Black Lives Matter, I don’t know,” Po’Shine’s head chef James Bradley, said Tuesday, calling out the actions as “tomfoolery.”
“If people want to protest,” he said, “find your hands busy doing something for the people that you’re protesting for. There’s a blueprint, and the blueprint is called the civil rights movement.”
The demonstrations in the other areas of Portland came even as the downtown parts of the city are still experiencing tense situations. Authorities labeled a protest a riot Saturday after a fire was lit inside the Portland Police Association.
Media pretends Portland unrest is over ‘since feds left,’ Andy Ngo shows riots, fires to police buildings https://t.co/QWX67DyOAd pic.twitter.com/wT0EEflsyl
— Conservative News (@BIZPACReview) August 9, 2020
“Portland, which is out of control, should finally, after almost 3 months, bring in the National Guard,” the president tweeted Monday. “The Mayor and the Governor are putting people’s lives at risk. They will be held responsible.”
Portland, which is out of control, should finally, after almost 3 months, bring in the National Guard. The Mayor and Governor are putting people’s lives at risk. They will be held responsible. The Guard is ready to act immediately. The Courthouse is secured by Homeland!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 10, 2020
“The violence and fires have definitely disturbed my family,” Billy Burch, who lives near the police union building, said Tuesday. “Having to close all of the windows so that tear gas doesn’t get in isn’t fun as we don’t have air conditioning.”
“I feel sad about the state of Portland right now in general,” he added. “If I could have family visit, I would tell them not to.”
Some residents apparently blamed police officers for “pushing” the protesters into some areas and others continue to support the movement despite the violence.
“Downvote me if you like,” one Reddit user wrote, “but as a person of color all I read and see here is white privilege asking politely that the protesters leave their insured property out of the struggle for equality and the defunding/abolition of the police.”
But one longtime Kenton resident condemned the vandalism that targeted the neighborhood over the weekend.
“What I saw last night was violence; these people did not care about property,” Michael Morrill told KGW News. “Talk. Work your problems out, and vote. If you don’t like what’s happening vote them out, vote for change, that’s democracy.”
Many residents gathered outside of Portland’s East Precinct on Sunday to show their support for the police and to call for an end to the rioting and destruction.
(Source: KGW News)
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Frieda@bizpacreview.com
Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.
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