August 6th: Bullrushed, Brutalized, Chased Through Suburbia

A devastatingly beautiful evening. Light fades from the sky. A cool breeze as I walk, once again, towards Floyd Light Park for another night of live-tweeting#DefendPDX #portlandprotests #pdxprotest #blacklivesmatter #police #acab #trumpsgestapo #momsarehere #portlandprotest

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Not seeing any signs of marching yet. Someone offers people helmets. A group grilling in the parking lot

Lots of rumors flying around. People are on edge, but in a way that only people very accustomed to being on edge can be

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

An NLG volunteer goes around and makes sure everyone has the number

"It feels very peaceful right now," my protest comrade remarks. It really does. Soft music. I can smell the grill. Beautiful night

The future is an abstraction

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

"Be sure to chant the names of people who died here, not just in Minneapolis! Anarchy is great, but black lives fucking matter!"

Huge applause. The crowd chants: Black Lives Matter

The names start:

Aaron Campbell
Kendra James
TeTe Gully
Quanice Hayes

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

The thing is, I think they really do believe that

Or maybe it's just what they need to believe

I don't know

Chant: "Fuck Ted Wheeler!"

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Now in front of the east precinct and I just didn't notice

A protester whacks the building with a lacrosse stick. Someone else bangs on the doors with their fists

I expect the building to collapse under the onslaught any second now

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Unlawful assembly declared. We are ordered to move North

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

@45thabsurdist observes that the LRAD telling us to disperse North seems, in fact, to be North of us

Not a great sign. Impossible orders proceed the worst violence

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Will this contained trash fire burn the brick precinct down somehow? I'm guessing Ted Wheeler will say yes tomorrow pic.twitter.com/94mX06n0UL

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Probably 250 people here now. Keep in mind I'm very bad at estimating crowd size. Bigger than yesterday for sure

The trash fire still hasn't burned the precinct building down

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

"No Lives Matter Unless Black Lives Matter!"

Someone does a graffiti

East Precinct still not on fire pic.twitter.com/u0AN0u2duM

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

A guy with a large media camera followed by a dude with an American Flag mask

There is some concern

"He's my security guard," large camera guy says. They don't seem to be causing trouble

People decide to leave them alone

East precinct still not on fire

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Sure enough they come up from the south

Here we go

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Driven to Ventura Park. They yelled at the press to 'not interfere with the line' and then sprinted. Only a few manages to keep up. I caught up but not in time to film the violence I saw from a distance, which I'm sure was the idea

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

A small line forms immediately pic.twitter.com/yZSVeXYqdt

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

The line stands for a while. Screams for everyone to get the fuck out the street. I brace myself fora bullrush

Stupid in retrospect–not enough of them for that. They sprint to their riot van and jet down the road

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

The protest begins to move back down Stark, slowly and together

"How do you spell Nazi? PPB!"

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Back at that Nazis house from. Last night

A protester breaks her window. No sign of life in there

"Let's go!" someone yells. Seems like a good plan pic.twitter.com/beAeFm3hqY

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Protesters stopped at 108th and Washington, grooving to "Lockdown" by Anderson Paak (thank you Shazam). A few protesters jam to the sultry beat

"Shields up! Stay prepared and be ready! Should we move or should we stay? "

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

This is a profoundly weird place to stop. Fork in the road, already kind of confusing traffic-wise. It's a dark night and everyone's in black

Seems like we're staying here anyway for now

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

A small group of police appear to be semi-surrounded

It's a weird situation

An officer tells us to back up off the street (and stop filming) so we don't get run over by the truck coming to extract them. "It's fucking common sense"

Thank you for your professionalism OSP

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

The police beat a hasty retraat and the protesters are left at this weird-ass intersection, unsure of what to do

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Getting reports from protesters as we go

My protest buddy was shoved to the ground while crossing the street as instructed

Another protester describes being shoved to the ground, then picked up by her pack. "Get home safe, miss!" the cop said to her

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Bullrush part 2: even shakier cam. Sorry pic.twitter.com/1YtM5IWnus

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

Well that was weird. We just got bullrushed through a nightmare suburbia maze of big box stores parking lots. The kind that are all interconnected. I have more terrible footage to upload but there are more cops and more parking lot so to be continue

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

It seems like we might be a out to get kettled in a Target parking lot. Whatever will my parents say. Arrested in the lot of a half-dead suburban shopping center

It's beautiful in its own way

Anyway there are probably too many of us. I think they're just having fun herding us

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

The last time I was at The Venue I [REDACTED]. One of the weirdest nights of my life. Now I've just been accused of rioting in a Target parking lot. It's clear I should simply never come out this way

We've really been scattered at this point. The night might be over

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020

And I'm out!

Solidarity to everyone still out there

— Laura Jedeed is Kind of Back I Guess (@LauraJedeed) August 7, 2020