PORTLAND, Ore. — The atmosphere was calm Friday outside the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Portland, Oregon. Federal law enforcement officers ordered protesters to clear the road and the building’s driveway only when vehicles needed to enter and exit.
Saturday was different. Officers inundated protesters with tear gas and set off flash-bang grenades, pushing the swelling crowd blocks away from the immigration facility.
The push was aided by an assortment of federal agents firing pepper balls, often shot directly at the feet of protesters. Confused members of the crowd questioned where they were being led, but they were only met with continued commands to keep stepping back.
As the crowd reached the end of the street, the first explosion rattled the air.
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Screams from protesters warned nearby residents in a five-story apartment building, many of whom had been watching the protests from their balconies, to close their windows. Protesters began dousing their eyes with saline and water, as those without respirators or gas masks fled further down the street to avoid the chemical weapon.
This was the scene over the weekend in what President Donald Trump calls “war-ravaged” Portland. Oregon’s largest city has experienced protests of Trump’s immigration policies for months. Still, most gatherings had been small and peaceful before the president announced he was deploying hundreds of National Guard troops to protect ICE agents and facilities.
No troops have yet arrived, after a Trump-appointed federal judge twice blocked the president’s plans. Still, the possibility of their deployment put protesters — and, seemingly, federal officers — on edge, even as the city remained mostly calm.
Localized chaos
The protests began in June after ICE arrested several asylum seekers outside the federal immigration court in Portland. The gatherings have fluctuated in size and intensity but appear to have grown in light of Trump’s threats.
Over the weekend, as few as five people joined morning protests. However, afternoons and evenings brought out several hundred protesters. A common sight was agents peering down from the rooftops with binoculars, paintball guns and rifles. A helicopter circled the facility for hours at a time, while several small drones operated by federal law enforcement were routinely flown over the crowd.
A message continually blared over a loudspeaker, instructing protesters to vacate the ICE facility’s driveway. At the same time, local police and an assortment of federal agents from agencies such as the Department of Homeland Security and U.S. Customs and Border Protection guarded convoys of fast-moving vehicles.
At times, agents fired pepper balls to enforce a buffer zone. During one incident, federal agents threw red and green smoke grenades into the crowd. A handful of protesters who refused to move were taken into custody. One individual who tried to pour water on one of the smoke grenades was repeatedly shot with pepper balls.
Some protesters responded with anger, hurling insults at the federal agents. Others attempted to hand out flowers and beaded necklaces, while one individual appeared to be meditating on the curb. Many stood by and watched, pointing their phones at the localized chaos unfolding around them.
Counterprotesters praise ICE
Although protesters have gathered at the ICE facility for months, recent days saw a new addition to the scene: counterprotesters.
Conservative influencers and pro-Trump attendees brought out signs thanking ICE for their work. The two groups at times appeared to provoke one another, which led to several physical altercations and arrests on Thursday evening.
Among those arrested was conservative influencer Nicholas Sortor, who fought with protesters. Sortor, who said he was attacked unprovoked by anti-fascist demonstrators, later posted on X that the U.S. Department of Justice had opened an investigation into his arrest and into alleged “viewpoint discrimination” by the Portland police.
Another conservative who was arrested after getting into a fist fight on Friday was back again on Saturday. The counterprotester, Thomas Allen, told Straight Arrow News he was held for roughly four and a half hours by the Portland police and charged with public disturbance and disorderly conduct.
But protesters argued that any discrimination did not single out conservatives. Katie Daviscourt, a reporter for the right-wing outlet The Post Millennial, was spotted filming alongside ICE officers from the roof of the facility. She was granted access to conduct interviews inside the building, a luxury those outside said wasn’t afforded to anyone else.
City remains calm despite protest
On Sunday, Trump told reporters that Portland was “burning to the ground” and said U.S. District Judge Karin Immergut — whom he appointed in 2019, during his first term — “ought to be ashamed” for blocking his deployment of National Guard troops to the city.
In a letter to the DOJ on Monday, the City of Portland accused federal agents of using excessive force against peaceful protesters while “favoring people who support its policies.”
Outside the single street occupied by protesters, however, Portland remained calm over the weekend. Outdoor markets and other city events continued as usual.
But protesters and counterprotesters are digging in. With attempts still being made to deploy the military, a crowd will likely remain outside the ICE building for the foreseeable future.
