"In the days since Donald Trump directed his "Secretary of War" to marshal troops against "domestic terrorists" in Portland, encouraging the use of "full force" in a city he likened to a "war zone," I have been hanging around the demonstration that the president wants to crush. What I've found is an atmosphere that is more like a carnival than combat."
"The action, Siebe told me, quickly gained the notice of Andy Ngo, a social-media influencer famous in right-wing circles for highlighting social unrest in the city, originally as a student at Portland State University and now as a regular guest on Fox News. The attention Ngo directed to the protest prompted more people to join it. "That's what we call unintended consequences," Siebe said."
Demonstrations in Portland began in June when friends pitched a tent outside an ICE facility and evolved into an encampment with cots, tents, and medical supplies. The protest gained wider attention after right-wing influencer Andy Ngo highlighted unrest, which drew more participants. President Trump directed federal forces to Portland, invoking the term "antifa" and urging the use of "full force." Trump's labeling of antifa as a "domestic terrorist organization" lacks legal basis. The atmosphere at the encampment has been largely nonviolent and communal, resembling a carnival rather than armed conflict, despite federal threats of deployment.
Read at The Atlantic
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