Promoter for Portland’s ‘Day of Rage’ wants to ‘abolish colonial systems,’ report says
Social media posts have added challenges to Portland police
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Twitter handle Generational Resistance, which promoted Sunday night’s “Day of Rage” in Portland that resulted in the toppling of two statues and damage to several buildings, said its ultimate goal is to “decolonize society by working to abolish colonial systems rooted in racism,” a report said.
The Oregonian newspaper wrote a lengthy article about the group that started mentioning the protest a day earlier. The paper said the city is having difficulty getting a grip on protesters because social media allows them to organize quickly and coordinate. The report said one of the instructions on Sunday was that videos and photos were not allowed.
Protesters stand over a toppled statue of President Theodore Roosevelt during an Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage protest on October 11, 2020 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Nathan Howard/Getty Images)
Andy Ngo, a journalist who has been documenting the unrest in the city, posted images of Sunday's destruction on Twitter. Ngo posted a video of protesters toppling the statue of Teddy Roosevelt, which depicted the former president riding on horseback. The video showed a rope tied around the statue and protesters could be heard cheering when the statue shifted.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}One person could be heard saying, “F--- all you colonizers. Every one of you that’s against Black Lives Matter can f--- the f--- off.”
After toppling the statues, the crowd smashed windows at the Oregon Historical Society and later moved onto the Portland State University Campus Public Safety office.
The paper said the protest—which resulted in three people being taken into custody -- was billed online as the “Indigenous Peoples Day of Rage,” and took place the evening before Columbus Day.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The paper said it reached out to Generational Resistance members and was issued a statement through its Twitter handle Monday night that read, “We stand to decolonize ourselves and decolonize society by working to abolish colonial systems rooted in racism and build community rooted in liberation.”
President Trump took to Twitter on Monday and posted, “The Radical Left fools in Portland don’t want any help from real Law Enforcement which we will provide instantaneously. Vote!”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Associated Press contributed to this report