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The past few weeks have seen civil unrest in the US hit new highs. Last weekend, the police shooting of Jacob Blake reignited protests in Kenosha, Wisconsin. This drew large crowds of Black Lives Matter protesters as well as right-wing counter-protesters.
One such counter-protester, Kyle Rittenhouse, 17, illegally took a firearm across state lines and shot three people in Kenosha.
Two of Rittenhouse’s victims were killed, and another was badly injured. Rittenhouse himself fled back to his home state of Illinois before being arrested there and charged with first-degree intentional murder. Data security experts learned from Rittenhouse’s social media that he was “police explorer,” an aspiring police officer.
The following week, protests in Portland turned deadly when a friend of far-right group Patriot Prayer was shot and killed. At the time of this writing, there are few details about the Portland shooting itself, aside from the victim’s name: Jay Bishop.
Following the Portland shooting, President Donald Trump slammed Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler. “Ted Wheeler, the wacky Radical Left Do Nothing Democrat Mayor of Portland, who has watched great death and destruction of his City during his tenure, thinks this lawless situation should go on forever. Wrong! Portland will never recover with a fool for a Mayor” Trump tweeted Saturday night.
Portland Police Chief Chuck Lovell stated that “The issue with firearms is very troubling to us, but people do have a constitutional right to carry firearms legally. So, it’s hard to prevent. Some of the instances that take place, you’re talking split-second, a couple of seconds. A lot of times we’re not right there to see things happen.”
Oregon Mayor Kate Brown alleged that Patriot Prayer and other far-right groups came to Portland looking for a fight. “The right-wing group Patriot Prayer and self-proclaimed militia members drove into downtown Portland last night, armed and looking for a fight,” Brown told reporters.
“Every Oregonian has the right to freely express their views without fear of deadly violence. I will not allow Patriot Prayer and armed white supremacists to bring more bloodshed to our streets.”
Protests in Portland have been occurring nightly since May. When George Floyd was killed in Minneapolis, the protests began in earnest.
Since then, attendance has waxed and waned. Jacob Blake’s shooting last week, however, reinvigorated the protests. With the November election looming, both Trump and his opponent Joe Biden have blamed the other for the current civil unrest.
Related: Portland Mayor Blasts Trump: ‘It’s you who have created the hate’
