Associated Press
PORTLAND, Ore. — Police said they made seven arrests as they clashed with anti-fascist protesters in Portland on Sunday.
Hundreds of people turned out to oppose a much smaller demonstration by the right-wing Patriot Prayer group. The Portland Police Bureau credited the main permitted protest, Portland Stands United Against Hate, with a peaceful event, but said a gathering at Waterfront Park turned “violent and criminal,” with anti-fascist protesters throwing smoke devices and other projectiles at officers in a waterfront park.
Police responded with pepper spray and warnings that the crowd would be arrested if it didn’t disperse.
The department said on its Twitter feed that two officers had been injured and that photographers had also been attacked.
The Patriot Prayer group also held a demonstration featuring speakers, including group leader Joey Gibson, in Vancouver, Washington, later Sunday. Officials in Washington and Oregon closed the footpath of the Interstate 5 bridge over the Columbia River between the cities.
The Oregonian/OregonLive reported that a protester had also been arrested at the Vancouver event. Portland police said they sent officers to Vancouver to assist law enforcement there.
