From Portland to Toronto, police are disappearing protesters with zero consequences

Photo Credit: (Law & Crime / Google Images)

Photo Credit: (Law & Crime / Google Images)

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Written by: Justin Lam

US Federal government sends secret police to Portland

Since early June, protests against racism have been taking place throughout America due to Derek Chauvin, a white male police officer, murdering George Floyd, a black citizen in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25, 2020.  Chauvin kneeled on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes and fourty-eight seconds, while ignoring Floyd saying “I can’t breathe”.

The murder sparked a movement against police violence around the world. Protests were held and information was being spread on social media as a way to raise awareness. 

On June 26, President Donald Trump signed and issued the Executive Order: Protecting American Monuments, Memorials and Statues and Combating Recent Criminal Activity. This ensures that any person or group who destroyed monuments or other important statues are fully prosecutable to the extent of the law. 

Ken Klippenstein, a reporter at The Nation, tweeted three pictures of a Public Affairs Guidance detailing the U.S Customs and Border Protection support’s plan on protecting federal properties:

 

The pictures were leaked to Klippenstein. In the memos, it was revealed that the locations where officers would be deployed should remain undisclosed.  

This explains how protesters were being caught off-guard and get arrested during their protests. 

Back in June, Portland police seized medical supplies provided by the students of Oregon Health and Science University during protests at Justice Center, according to The Oregonian. 

Furthermore, Federal law enforcement officers had been using unmarked vehicles to arrest and detain protesters without any explanation as early as July 14 in Portland, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting.

Videos showcasing officers detaining the protesters in unmarked vehicles have been shared on social media as well. 

Interviews conducted by the Oregon Public Broadcasting also demonstrated officers detaining people in Portland that are not even near a federal property. 

Portland officers have also been instructed that they were allowed to cover their name tags on their uniform, according to Jami Resch, a former Portland Police Chief. 

But in order for the protesters to identify the officer that arrested them, they have to first give their name to the officer. Alan Kessler, a Portland attorney, said, “It’s this catch-22 where they say I cannot tell you their name unless you give me their name,” according to The Oregonian.  

Mark Pettibone and Conner O’Shea, two protesters protesting at the Multnomah County Justice Centre and Marko O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse, were victims of the kidnapping on July 15. 

Pettibone recalled being told that people in camouflage were lurking in the area with unmarked minivans, capturing people left and right. 

“I am basically tossed into the van,” Pettibone said. “And I had my beanie pulled over my face so I couldn’t see and they held my hands over my head,” according to the Oregon Public Broadcasting. 

Pettibone was put into a cell after being kidnapped without being told where he was, but was subsequently released without any records of his arrest after 90 minutes. 

Instances of federal law enforcement officers abusing their powers have also been documented in an earlier incident.  

Donavan La Bella, a protester, was shot in the head with an impact munition by a federal law enforcement officer on July 11 during a protest outside of the Mark O. Hatfield Federal Courthouse. 

La Bella suffered skull fractures and needed surgery, according to The Oregonian.  

Twitter user @BobbySpumoni tweeted the United States Department of Homeland Security’s rationale for employing violence towards protesters:

 

Most of the reasons on the list were cases of vandalism, with protesters painting over statues of colonizers and powerful slave owners, along with federal properties.


BLM protesters disappeared by police for hours in Toronto 

A similar situation where the police officers kidnapping protesters appeared in Toronto on July 18. 

Three Black Lives Matter protesters at Queens Park were arrested around 11 a.m. 

The arrested protesters covered several statues in paint, including the statue of Canada’s first prime minister, John A. MacDonald, while declaring the police to be defunded during the protest. 

Egerton Ryerson’s statue was also covered in paint by Black Lives Matter demonstrators on July 18. 

Both of the aforementioned figures had a prominent role in establishing Canada’s residential school system.  

The residential school system had Indigenous children endure physical, sexual and emotional abuse. They were also stripped of their national identity, as any who were caught speaking their first language would receive extreme punishment. 

The Toronto BLM arrestees were still “being transported to the precinct” by an unmarked vehicle to the 52 Division at 255 Dundas Street West, three hours after arrest. 

Sarah Jama, a community organizer, tweeted:

 

This incident is very similar to the arrested protesters in Portland, where the flow of information between outsiders and the arrestee were cut off.  

A group of protesters were formed in front of 52 Division, requesting the three arrestees to be released. This time, Twitter was used as the channel to assemble the protesters. 

The group of protesters stayed overnight in solidarity in front of the police station.

 

One of the arrestees was not given access to her medication, as Black Lives Matter – Toronto noted:

 

After more than 12 hours, the three arrestees were released at 2:54 a.m. on July 19.

 

During the period, the arrestees were not allowed to have contact with outsiders. This included their lawyers. 

Saron Gebressellassi, one of the arrestee’s lawyer, tweeted:

 

The Toronto Police Service explained the arrest in a tweet, stating that the protesters were damaging statues and vandalizing federal property.:

 

However, they failed to acknowledge that protesters were held without access to lawyers, and not brought to the police precinct for hours.

A press conference was also held on July 19 addressing the situation.



Similarities abound between the two cities

Toronto and Portland held rallies and protests in support of Black Lives Matter.  

However, officers in Portland had been arresting protesters with unmarked vans while blind-folding them, while Toronto officers disappeared protesters for hours. 

The police have resorted to violence in order to arrest the protesters. 

During a protester’s detainment, they were not allowed to get in touch with their lawyers, nor did they know where they were taken to.

In order to silence the protests, the police chose to resort to violence. The arrests in Toronto and Portland were both an intimidation tactic employed by law enforcement. 

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