"Wrong and Illegal": ACLU Criticizes Portland Police Response to the January 20 Protest

Doug Brown

The ACLU of Oregon came down hard today on the Portland Police Bureau's heavy-handed response to the Inauguration Day protest on Friday, when nonviolent protesters were shot with less-lethal rounds and subject to "stingball" grenades and tear gas: "No matter what others have said, this was a failure."

"It is clear that responding to peaceful protests with militarized and excessive force puts both the public and police officers in harm’s way, but it also risks the very fabric of our democracy," the civil rights organization said today. "This kind of policing shuts down First Amendment activity. It is no longer free speech and free assembly when the city of Portland directs its militarized police force to control the direction and duration of a protest. If we do not challenge the city’s use of militarized police to control and shut down a peaceful protest we leave the door open to more oppressive policing in the future. The City of Portland has long prided itself as being a hub for First Amendment activities of all kinds, but these heavy-handed police tactics, if not checked, will have long lasting effects on free speech and expression in our city."

The ACLU's whole statement is worth your time to read, so click over to it.

The organization also filed a lengthy public records request "to better understand the scope of Portland's response." Here's the request: