Report of some very brave smart black girls at Thursday night protests vs. the midnight agents provocateurs

In Portland, some Black activists frustrated with white protesters

By Deborah Bloom @ Reuters.com, July 31

PORTLAND (Reuters) - A small group of Black teenage girls carrying megaphones stood in front of the federal courthouse in downtown Portland near midnight on Thursday facing a largely white band of protesters.

“I’m done with y’all focusing on all these white folk,” said 17-year-old Erandi, who asked to be identified only by her first name. “This is a Black Lives Matter movement.”

And as it happened, Portland had its first night in weeks without tear gas here after state police took over from federal agents guarding a courthouse that has been the focal point of violence between protesters and those agents.

For over two months, the nightly Black Lives Matter protests have followed a familiar pattern.

A peaceful demonstration against racial injustice and police brutality begins at nightfall at the central police precinct.

They are more organic than organized. Protesters chant: “George Floyd. Breonna Taylor. Black Lives Matter.” A microphone is passed around to whoever wants to speak. The scenes feel festive at times, with drumbeats and tambourines, and a grill that serves food at all hours. On one night, a man holding [...]

[...]

But the reality on the ground is as murky as the nightly clouds of tear gas had been. There are no clear leaders or structure to these demonstrations, and as midnight looms the focus moves to a small band of mainly white people trying to attack the courthouse throwing fireworks and objects at police and agents over a fence guarding the building.

The New York Times this week said an internal Department of Homeland Security memo indicated the federal agents didn’t understand the nature of the protests, particularly those attacking the courthouse.

“We lack insight into the motives for the most recent attacks,” the memo said.

DIFFERENT PROTESTS

“There are two different protests. This is beautiful,” said Ngee Gow, 22, pointing to the main body of demonstrators at the central police precinct. “This is destruction,” he said, nodding to those waiting to confront federal agents outside the courthouse.

Suburban mothers, veterans and healthcare workers joined anti-racism demonstrations in early July to oppose the federal intervention and to try to tone down the violence. The Black demonstrators initially welcomed the moms - and dads who came with leaf blowers to disperse the tear gas - but are now frustrated with the band of midnight provocateurs at the courthouse.

Portland is one of the whitest cities in the United States, with only three percent of residents identifying as African-American. Though residents there are overwhelmingly progressive, the city itself is still very segregated, a legacy of Oregon’s racist past as the only state to ban Black people when it was founded. 

“We’re fighting with our hearts here,” Erandi, the Black teenager told Reuters. “We need these white people to acknowledge that this isn’t a bonfire. This isn’t just a party.”

Huddled with Erandi and a few other Black demonstrators, Gow looked on disappointedly at the boisterous crowd in front of the courthouse, chanting “Feds go home.” 

“It’s about Black lives. Period,” Gow said. “If you really want to respect Black lives, and if you really want to respect Breonna Taylor and George Floyd, then you’d be listening to the movement instead of antagonizing police.”

 

he says it's still about the Portland police,less about the Feds

And I think if nightclubs and bars were open, half of them would be there instead. But there's nowhere else to go for the white kids so party time at the protests is good, doesn't cost anything, got no job right now so there's no extra money for that if you could...

For those who don't know her: Alice from Queens is a fairly sarcastic commentator followed by a lot of elitist cognescenti.

found the Police Chief's twitter feed, looks black to me in the photo but what do I know from skin color signification.

Anyhow, he tweeted this on the 26th as regards certain people agitating for more destruction like the burning of the youth center:

and on the 29th he tweeted this as regards the governor, probably referring to her trying to get Pence to call back the goons:

and then he tweeted this 17 hrs. ago

which the Portland Police account retweeted.

Meanwhile, looking at the P.D. feed, I see they would like public assistance working on these homicides which have nothing to do with the protests

and they posted this press release concerning the two people they arrested in the wee hours of July 30 next to the courthouse, which includes pictures of weapons they picked up in the park

Now explain to me again: what exactly are the continued protests in Portland protesting? Peaceful protest is certainly legal and first amendment right and all that, but what is it about? Systemic racism, inequality,  or something vague like that? Why not protest the Trump administration's handling of coronavirus which is actually killing many black lives. Huh? And if you don't want your police, you could send them here, they seem mighty fine to this New Yorker.

but on their way home:

Followup thread: nine days later, nightly protests still not peaceful.

Sorry for those deluded into believing everything is about Trump and that all protesters care about is solving the problem of police treating black citizens unfairly and that the two things are connected.

Also sorry for those that cannot see the reality that most continuing protests have been against city governments run by the Democratic party.