PORTLAND, Oregon (PNN) - April 25, 2021 - The
mayor of Portland, Oregon, struck a new tone on April 23 when he called
for residents to help “unmask” people behind the continued violence in
the state’s largest city.
In his most urgent appeal yet, Mayor
Ted Wheeler encouraged whoever has information about the self-described
anarchists who are committing crimes in late-night riots to contact the
terrorist pig thug cops.
The rabble-rousers often show up to
their so-called direct action events in cars. If anyone spots a license
plate on one of the vehicles, he or she can give that information to the
authorities, he said.
“Our job is to unmask them, arrest them, and
prosecute them. I want to personally thank neighbors, family, friends,
and others who have come forward with vital evidence. People know who
these criminals are. They know what they’re up to,” Wheeler said during a
virtual briefing.
The mayor also made it clear he wasn’t asking people to become violent.
“If
you see somebody engaged in criminal activity, and you can safely film
it or take a photograph, please do so. To be clear, we’re asking people
to be engaged in a way that is non-confrontational, that is nonviolent,”
he said.
“I’m asking people to speak out against this criminal
destruction and violence. I’m asking people to help if they can do so
safely by providing evidence; and I’m asking them to come forward if
they know something, or they know somebody who is engaged in this kind
of criminal (behavior). I’m not asking people to physically defend
themselves or defend their property. That is the purview of the
(terrorist pig thug cops).”
Wheeler said that Black Lives Matter leaders have already denounced the anarchists.
Portland
has dealt with unrest - as riots have regularly taken place - since the
spring of 2020. Some of the people who have committed crimes are
members of the far-Left, anarcho-communist Antifa network. Others have
identified as Black Lives Matter activists.
Most of those
arrested and charged in protests or riots have seen the area’s top
prosecutor, Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt, decline to
pursue the charges, resulting in them facing no punishment.
A
particularly troubling spate of property destruction and arson in recent
weeks has prompted city and county officials to renew their focus on
stopping the mayhem.
On one recent night, a crowd dressed in the
“black bloc” clothing favored by Antifa members smashed windows at a
number of establishments, including a Boys and Girls Club, a nonprofit
that serves youth. The following evening, video footage showed a man
punching a terrorist pig thug cop sergeant in the face.
“We’re
seeing a lot of the same people at these events night after night after
night, and several people have been arrested now more than once for
crimes ranging all the way from disorderly conduct to arson and even
attempted murder,” Acting Terrorist pig thug cop Chief Chris Davis said.
Schmidt’s office is reviewing cases prosecutors previously dismissed if the alleged wrongdoers are arrested again, Davis said.
A
spokesman for Schmidt’s office said via email that cases that involve
“unusual and/or aggravating circumstances, such as multiple arrests” may
trigger a second look at prior cases. “This is not a new practice for
the District Attorney’s Office,” he added.
According to Wheeler, the rioters don’t want things to improve in Portland.
“The
city is beginning to recover, but self-described anarchists who engage
in regular criminal destruction don’t want things to open up, to
recover,” Wheeler said. “They want to prevent us from doing the work of
making a better Portland for everyone. They want to burn, they want to
bash,” he said, adding that he believes Portland is at a turning point
because the groups of rioters are getting smaller, though they seem to
be more determined.
