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BLM Protesters Face Attacks from Federal Agents, Police, and Other Violence in Cities Across the U.S.

HeadlineJul 27, 2020

Antiracist protests across the country this weekend were met with violent police attacks, arrests, and the death of a protester in Austin, Texas.

For the 60th day in a row, demonstrators rallied in Portland, Oregon, Sunday. Shortly after midnight this morning, federal officers fired tear gas and other crowd-control weapons to disperse a crowd that had gathered outside the federal courthouse, which has become a flashpoint of the nightly protests.

President Trump’s deployment of federal officers to Portland and other cities sparked a new round of protests across the country over the weekend. On Thursday, the Trump administration sent a team of federal tactical border officers to Seattle. It remains unclear what role the agents played as Seattle police arrested dozens of protesters and fired flash grenades and pepper spray into crowds.

In related news from Seattle, a judge has ordered The Seattle Times and four TV stations to hand over to the police photos and videos of a protest in May during which windows were smashed and police cars were set ablaze. The police hope the images will help them identify suspects, in a move press freedom advocates and reporters warn endangers all journalists.

In Austin, Texas, a protester named Garrett Foster was shot dead. Foster’s mother said her son was pushing his fiancée’s wheelchair when a car drove into the crowd and the motorist opened fire.

On Saturday, three people were injured at a Louisville, Kentucky, protest over the police killing of Breonna Taylor. The gun fired at the protest belonged to a member of the armed coalition of mostly Black activists known as the “Not F—ing Around Coalition” — the three victims were also part of the group.

In Aurora, Colorado, authorities are investigating after a car drove through a Black Lives Matter protest. One protester also reportedly fired a weapon at the march.

In Chicago, Christopher Columbus statues were taken down from two parks after an order from Mayor Lori Lightfoot. One of the statues was in Grant Park, where a police officer last week punched teenage activist Miracle Boyd in the face, knocking out her teeth, during a protest to topple the statue.

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