Members of the far-right group, the Proud Boys, clashed with police in Salem, Oregon, during New Year’s Day protests on Friday, ending in some prisons.
While the Statesman Journal reported, supporters of President Donald Trump gathered in the state capital for a “Mass Civil Disobedience” rally, mainly protesting the restrictions of COVID-19. During the demonstration, a few hundred protesters began marching to Mahonia Hall, the official residence of Governor Kate Brown. Antifa’s counter-protests also followed.
Salem Police Lieutenant Debbie Aguilar said Statesman Journal that several arrests were made. Chemical ammunition was also reported to have been used by protesters against the police, including a can of smoke and lit fireworks.
Videos shared by independent journalist Brendan Gutenschwager show protesters wearing Proud Boy logos and shouting at counter-protesters. One of the videos shows the police tying a demonstrator’s hands on his back, saying the police were arresting Trump supporters for “illegal meeting”.
Additional images show the police ordering protesters to leave. “You must all disperse from this place immediately. If you don’t disperse immediately, you will be subject to arrest, ”someone can be heard saying.
WARNING: The video below contains disturbing scenes and strong language.
One of the videos that Gutenschwager shared appears to show the can of smoke the police were referring to. In his description, Gutenschwager wrote that the canister was an attempt to “disperse the crowd of Proud Boys and Trump supporters”, but someone in a black sweatshirt with a bandana tied around his face throws it at the police.
Police used non-lethal ammunition, such as flashbangs, to disperse the crowds, according to Statesman Journal. The Salem Police Twitter account alerted protesters that ammunition could be used and arrests would be made, but later tweeted that it did not use CS gas.
Some videos show Proud Boys getting into fights with the police. As the police push the protesters, a person can be heard shouting “you’re fucking antifa” to the police in a video.
Due to police resistance on Friday, some of the protesters seemed to retract their support for the authorities, as many people criticized the police across the country after the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery.
A video appears to show supporters of the right and left, as described in a tweet, stepping on a Blue Lives Matter flag after police stopped the protests.
“I was fucking there for you all summer. Fuck,” a protester can be heard saying.
Additional footage shows the police bearing the brunt of criticism when someone observes, “We came by for 10 months straight.”
Newsweek contacted the Salem Police Department for comment.
Nathan Howard / Getty