Portland, OR. — On September 27th, 2025 President Donald Trump issued an order for Secretary of War, Pete Hegseth, to “provide all necessary Troops to protect War ravaged Portland, and any of our ICE Facilities under siege from attack by Antifa, and other domestic terrorists.” The order quickly drew opposition from the top level Democrats in the state, while Republicans challenged their responses as being “tone deaf.” While Governor Kotek stated that “[t]here is no insurrection, there is no threat to national security, and there is no need for military troops in our major city” and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson said “[i]f President Trump came to Portland today, what he would find is people riding their bikes, playing sports, enjoying the sunshine, buying groceries or produce from a farmers’ market”, there have been ongoing violent clashes between activists and federal officers at the ICE facility in Portland through the summer. Across the board the statements from top level elected Democrats including state and federal officials did not address the ongoing riots at the ICE facility.
Some of the most significant unrest at Portland’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in 2025 occurred on June 14, 2025 when Portland Police officially declared a riot after demonstrations escalated outside the South Waterfront building. According to OPB, protesters attempted to force entry, with some using rocks and an upended stop sign to batter a door. Federal officers deployed force in response and detained at least one person. One officer was struck in the head by a rock, sustaining a laceration above the eye, federal prosecutors later confirmed in a statement issued by the Justice Department.
The next day, Portland Police reported making three arrests tied to the violence, noting that significant resources were required to contain the crowd. Federal prosecutors subsequently charged multiple individuals for their role in the unrest, with allegations ranging from assault on officers to arson and property destruction. A release from the Justice Department document described how defendants “were seen using an upended stop sign which resulted in significant damage to the main entry door to the ICE building.”
By mid-July, OPB reported that more than two dozen people faced charges stemming from protests at the ICE site, including those arrested on the night of the riot. The same review also documented claims of force by federal officers, including a Portland nurse who said he was struck in the face with a pepper ball while speaking into a megaphone. Local officials described the June 14 event as a turning point in the summer’s protests, marking the only incident formally declared a riot at the ICE facility during this period.
Following yesterday’s order from the President activists appeared at the Portland ICE facility and tensions escalated with federal officers making an arrest as activists can be heard shouting obscenities at the officers.
A flyer from Portland Contra las Deportaciones shows multiple other organizations partnering with them to call for a “rally at the ICE facility” on 9/28/2025 at 4pm. Their post accompanying the flyer states:
No federal troops in Portland no ice in Portland! We will not be silent while trump attacks our city. Now is not the time to hide it’s the time to fight!
It is no secret this is happening one week after Portland issued a land use violation to the ice facility and now trump is sending in the troops to protect the facility. They see the power of the people and are trying to slow us down. But we will keep going until we get ice out of Portland!
Their “community partners” include Tesla Takedown PDX, Portland for Palestine, FRSO Portland (Freedom Road Socialist Organization), Fried Egg Workers Union, and PDX ICE Watch.
FRSO Portland describes themselves thus:
Revolution. Socialism. Liberation.
We are a national organization of revolutionaries fighting for socialism in the United States. PDX chapter.
Portland for Palestine is described thus in their listing on actionnetwork.org:
Portland for Palestine is a group of organizers and activists in Portland, Oregon fighting for Palestinian liberation. We understand our government’s unique role in funding and supporting Israel, and that we have an important role to play in the struggle against imperialism.
We fight for an end to all U.S. aid to Israel and against war profiteers in our backyard. We stand behind the Palestinian resistance and recognize the Palestinian people’s legitimate right to resist the occupation and put an end to settler-colonialism and United States imperialism in the region.
About the Author
Round them all up, deport who you can, imprison the rest. This socialism shit has got to end. Follow the money!