Opinion
U.S.A. –-(Ammoland.com)- Political violence has become commonplace across the country. From coast to coast groups have clashed leading experts to wonder if we are beyond a tipping point in political discourse. This weekend violence was experienced on both coasts.
Portland
Antifa and Patriot Prayer clashed in the streets of Portland this past Saturday in the latest skirmished between the far left anarcho-communist group and conservative organizations.
Patriot Prayer, a group, led by former Republican Senate candidate Joey Gibson, held a march in the far-left stronghold of Portland, OR. The march was in support of law and order which the group claims that the city has lost due to left-wing groups like Antifa and Black Lives Matter.
One example given was police standing idly by as Antifa blocked traffic, beat on cars, and assaulted a senior citizen.
“With less then 24 hour notice hundreds of people mobilized for a flash march in downtown Portland,” Gibson told AmmoLand News. “This was a result of the people being extremely angry because the mayor allowed protesters to block an intersection and attack cars with no police intervention. American citizens will no longer sit around while the politicians refuse to do their job.”
Antifa and Black Lives Matter have been protesting the death of Patrick Kimmons. Police responded to the scene of a shooting where someone shot two other people. Kimmons turned towards police and came at them while holding a gun in his hand. The police fired on Kimmons, and he later died at the hospital.
Antifa and Black Lives Matter claim that the police should not have fired at Kimmons. In their view, police shot Kimmons for being black. Family members and the two groups have set up a memorial for Kimmons in Portland.
Antifa showed up to the Patriot Prayer march with bear spray, batons, and knives according to law enforcement sources. It appears that their intent was to intimidate the marchers.
Police managed to keep the groups separated until after sundown. Patriot Prayer and The Proud Boys were leaving their march when Antifa tried to burn an American Flag. This act caused the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer to return to the scene to confront the flag burner.
A fight broke out between the two rival groups. It is unclear who started the melee through the police report, although an unaffiliated eyewitness who was at Kelly’s Olympian, which is a popular bar, claims that a member of the Antifa group started spraying the Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer with some type of aerosol spray.
Riot police moved in to clear the crowd using pepper balls. The Portland Police were able to get control of the situation and disburse the crowd of the fighting groups. The chaos died down as the police stood between the groups until they both dispersed the scene on the altercation.
AmmoLand contacted the Portland Police to acquire about if they arrested anyone tied to the unrest. According to the department, they have not arrested anyone, but there is still an open investigation into the clash, and the police are reviewing the security footage.
New York
On the same day as the fighting in the streets of the west coast city of Portland, violence broke out in the east coast city of New York between the Proud Boys and Antifa.
A group of around a dozen Proud Boys was leaving a speech by Proud Boy leader Gavin McInnis at the Republican Club when Antifa protestors confronted the group as they were walking down the sidewalk.
Recently Antifa has vandalized the Republican headquarters in New York and threatened more political violence against Trump supporters in the state. There is still an open investigation into the vandalism incident.
A member of Antifa ran up to the group of Proud Boys and attempted to steal one of the Proud Boys MAGA hats. This failed attempted theft ended up in a fight between Antifa and the Proud Boys.
The Antifa members were overwhelmed by the Proud Boys and left bloody on the sidewalk. The police showed up and arrested three members of Antifa even though they were the ones beaten and battered because they were the aggressors in the conflict.
Although the media have only recently shined a light on partisan violence of left-wing extremist, Antifa and other groups have been upping their violence following rhetoric encouraging more violence by Hillary Clinton and Eric Holder.
Right-wing pundits call the people taking part in these attacks a “left-wing mob.” Left-wing pundits push back saying that the people responsible for the violence are only upset protesters and blame Trump.
About John Crump
John is a NRA instructor and a constitutional activist. He is the former CEO of Veritas Firearms, LLC and is the co-host of The Patriot News Podcast which can be found at www.blogtalkradio.com/patriotnews. John has written extensively on the patriot movement including 3%’ers, Oath Keepers, and Militias. In addition to the Patriot movement, John has written about firearms, interviewed people of all walks of life, and on the Constitution. John lives in Northern Virginia with his wife and sons and is currently working on a book on leftist deplatforming methods and can be followed on Twitter at @crumpyss, on Facebook at realjohncrump, or at www.crumpy.com.
History is repeating itself but not in Germany, right here in the good old U.S.A. we are being subjected to the same tactics that were used by the Nazis. It really amazes me why the police just stand by and do nothing. One of these days a nut job will hit one with a bike lock or shoot one and then what will happen. Police take an oath to defend and protect but some ignorant mayor tells them to stand down. It is about time to declare open season on these worthless, Soros boot licking, mayors. Innocent people are going… Read more »
@tomcat — Just what do you mean by “open season?” Are you volunteering to be the first to start shooting folks?
@SKid, are you advocating for the street thugs, or the mayors that ordering the police not to enforce the law?
@ Schofield Kid Hmm it sounds like you are trying to start an argument or get a chance to turn someone in for threats. Ether way you are not too smart to post something like you did. No I am not promoting killing anyone. We have been discussing voting and this fits with those that need to be voted out. Go back under the rock you came out from under.
@tomcat — Okay, okay, so it was just a boy talking tough. Calm down and don’t be so hot-headed. I know now to keep to the adults here.
@Tcat, this skidmark kid troll is pushing your buttons to get “responses” for the purpose of fattening his paycheck. He thinks that you are a mark.
@ W. Bill I know he was either trolling or trying to start something. On some things I think it is a necessary evil to have to defend your position and keep the gendarmes from your door. Just another nitwit paid by Soros, as you said.
Treat them as what they are, TERRORIST! and be done with them!
Agreed.
The cops need to do their job. The liberal mayors and police chiefs of these once proud cities should be ashamed and replaced. Unfortunately the majority of the citizens in these pacifistic bastions are so far gone they are unable to comprehend their own stupidity and are unwilling to vote in dignified officials. Having said this, I am very grateful these skirmishes are allowed to perpetuate. I enjoy watching these little antifa douchebags get their asses kicked on a regular basis, and as long as the good guys continue to wait until they are attacked first before countering, it will… Read more »
Why do the police allow violent activity? Looking to get some publicity and blame conservatives for protesting while hooded thugs destroy property? And they say we can’t call the left mobs.
That the police are ordered to “Stand Down” is very suspect in my eyes. Since Ferguson and Baltimore, those who are supposed to “protect” the people and property have consistently failed. Why? Who is behind these orders to stand down? What recourse do people have when a group surrounds you or your car? Do you have the right to open fire? Do you claim “imminent danger” like all police do when they shoot? Those in power from the mayor down and up the line are setting the stage for more violence. I believe they are being instructed to do so… Read more »
There are groups out there in your area, you just have to search a little bit. #%s, various gun groups etc. Just be careful. Form your own. I have.
Colonel Jeff Cooper once suggested a simple solution. I may be wrong on this but I believe it’s something the British SAS may have done at one time. Pick out the leaders and gut shoot them with a suppressed rimfire from a discrete location . Nobody dies and most will not even know what happened until they get very sick. Wouldn’t take long to make them very afraid to show up and cause trouble.
@Taj, rat shot would be appropriate.
Thanks to the lefts divide and conquer strategy, we are more and more finding in America in the same type of political battles we see in middle Eastern and 3rd world countries. The left has always played the race card, now they are trying to turn all people against the white males with their white supremacy tactics. They want to divide families by encouraging women to leave their conservative husbands. The only family they wast to stay together are those coming to the country illegally. And now, they want to use terrorism to keep conservatives from voting and divide the… Read more »
Portland and NewYork are just 2 of the many shithole cities in the USA. I’m not letting a bunch of violent protesters surround me or my family. We have a right to peacefully protest not violence.
Anyone wearing a face covering at a protest should be arrested. KKK ARENT ALLOWED TO COVER THEIR FACES, neither should antifa
You are not allowed to cover your face in OKC. That law was put in place years ago.
It is also very much illegal in NYC. https://codes.findlaw.com/ny/penal-law/pen-sect-240-35.html
When minding your own business and suddenly find yourself in the middle of left-wing demonstrators, what to do to protect yourself and property besides leave the area as promptly as possible? Protestors may have rights but so do non-protestors. Who protects the innocents caught up in this mess if not the police? What if you shoot a couple of protestors who are attacking you with clubs and who knows what else? Worse, what if one of the mob attacking you gets shot and is black? Besides lots of whining and disabled/dead protestor?