Federal law enforcement officers pepper-sprayed and detained several anti-ICE protesters Tuesday night at the federal building in Eugene.
The protest began around 2 p.m. Activists from Eugene said they’d been joined by a group who travelled from Portland.
Attendees, some of them in black masks and helmets, knocked on the glass doors of the federal building, which houses an Immigration and Customs Enforcement field office.
They taunted employees inside with signs, fake donuts on sticks, and calls of “here, piggy piggy.” Some attendees climbed an art installation outside, while others wrote anti-ICE messaging on the ground in chalk.
Around 7:30 p.m., masked law enforcement officers emerged and corralled the crowd to the northeast side of the building. They then grabbed two protesters and forced them inside, while pepper spraying another.
“They followed us around the whole block, and then as soon as they got to the front of the building, they started grabbing some signs," a protester, who identified themself as Pixie, told KLCC. "They crowded up, and they were watching the crowd before they pretty much attacked one of our peaceful protesters.”
Note: These videos contain explicit language.
One or more protestors responded by grabbing road construction barrels from the street and throwing them in front of the building, after officers had gone inside.
Then, a protester grabbed a road construction sign from the street and tossed it in front of the building. Officers reemerged and gave chase, ultimately detaining a person.
In a statement sent to KLCC by email, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said three people had been arrested for “assaulting law enforcement and vandalism.”
“These rioters threw rocks and metal objects at federal law enforcement officers, vandalized federal property, and attempted to block the entrance of the building,” wrote McLaughlin.
Throughout the event, multiple drones hung overhead. Eugene Police Department confirmed Tuesday that its Mobile Response Team was monitoring the scene.
In a press release, EPD said protesters had been seen throwing objects at Federal Protective Service agents, and had damaged federal property. KLCC couldn’t immediately confirm that.
EPD also reported a physical altercation on the street where the protest was being held, but they said both individuals had left before they arrived.
EPD has previously said it would not assist federal officers in enforcing immigration laws. The agency said “no immigration related activities were occurring” at the Eugene Federal Building on Tuesday.
Tuesday’s scene follows multiple contentious protests at the federal building in recent months.
An anti-ICE protester, who said they were from Eugene and declined to give their name to KLCC, said they hoped to establish an encampment in the city that’s similar to the one outside ICE offices in Portland.
Additional arrests
On Wednesday morning, EPD announced it had made two other arrests in the vicinity of Tuesday night's protest.
At 11 p.m., EPD arrested Cade Soren Watson of Eugene, for allegedly spray-painting “protest graffiti” on the Ferry Street Bridge.
Around 12:45 a.m., EPD arrested a Portland man named Ryan Steven Payne, 28, for allegedly using pepper spray on another person. The press release said he’d been seen in a group of protesters.
Tuesday night’s demonstration ended around 2 a.m., according to EPD.
All videos by Nathan Wilk/KLCC
