Riot Declared in Portland, National Guard Activated

Nov. 5, 2020 (EIRNS)—State and local police authorities declared a riot in Portland, Oregon, last night as protests following Election Day turned violent, with attacks on the police and local businesses. According to Fox News, the Multnomah County Sheriff’s office announced that the National Guard has been deployed by Gov. Kate Brown to respond to acts of violence, as well as to “maintain public order and ensure community safety.”

“Guard members are trained in crowd control and will be riding with local response teams. They are dressed in military style garb, which is their uniform,” the Sheriff’s office said. “Oregon National Guard members are civilian community members helping to protect us. We don’t take this decision lightly.” The riot declaration lasted about two hours and protests continued afterwards.

Military Times reported earlier yesterday evening that at least ten states have put National Guard troops on standby to respond to post-election unrest. Most of the states were not forthcoming about the size of their activations, though Military Times has tallied at least 2,600 troops activated between Alabama, Arizona, Massachusetts, and Pennsylvania. The majority of states with troops on state active duty had opted to keep them in a standby status and were waiting in their staging locations and are ready to respond if necessary, said numerous state Guard officials.