PORTLAND, Ore. — People vandalized the Blazers Boys & Girls Club and multiple businesses in Northeast Portland during a "direct action" march Monday night.
Portland police declared an unlawful assembly and made two arrests. Emma Lightstone, 27, was arrested and faces charges of first-degree criminal mischief and riot. Emily Keppler, 27, was arrested and faces a charge of first-degree criminal mischief.
The march, said to be on behalf of George Floyd as the jury in the Derek Chauvin trial began deliberations, was posted on social media encouraging people to gather at Chapman Square at 3 p.m. and meet at Woodlawn Park by 8 p.m. At around 9:30 p.m., a group of about 75-80 people, according to police, began marching from Woodlawn Park to the North Precinct.
According to journalists on the scene, marchers on Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard were told by police on the Long Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) that the street was only open to vehicular traffic. Police said marchers were also warned over the LRAD to not engage in criminal acts or they'd be subject to arrest, force and munitions.
Photos: Vandalism during march in NE Portland
As the group marched, there were reports of broken windows at the Popeyes on Ainsworth Street and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and the U.S. Bank at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Killingsworth Street. Just before 10 p.m., police declared an unlawful assembly.
As the march continued, windows were smashed at the Blazers Boys & Girls Club located at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Emerson Street, just south of the North Precinct. Sergio Olmos, a reporter for Oregon Public Broadcasting who was on the scene, tweeted that the crowd stopped and ejected the person who started smashing windows at the Boys & Girls Club.
At least one demonstrator on social media tweeted a link to donate to the Boys and Girls Club and said it wasn't an intended target.
Other businesses were reported to be damaged, including the Natural Grocers at Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Alberta Street, and the Boost Mobile and Subway restaurant at Northeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Jessup Street.
By 11 p.m., police said many in the crowd had left the area.