Heavily Armed Far-Right Mob Floods Oregon Capitol

Business Business Headlines News

SALEM, Or.—A group of about 300 demonstrators attempted to force their way into two separate entrances of the Oregon State Capitol on Monday, outraged lawmakers were holding a special session closed to the public.The crowd was a loose collection of members of the Proud Boys, Patriot Prayer and other far-right groups, many of them are armed with pistols and rifles. At one point during the demonstration, which began around 9 a.m., a woman tried to climb in a window on the west side of the government building. Oregon State Troopers, however, repelled her—before two more troopers showed up to insist that she get off the ledge.Those troopers were quickly chased off by screaming protesters, many of them toting long black rifles. Minutes later, the crowd moved to the building’s north entrance and attempted to push their way in. A dozen more troopers arrived at the door, declared it an unlawful assembly, and pushed the crowd back, using some kind of deterrent in a series of “pop” sounds, at which point the protesters swarmed back out again, their eyes watering and coughing.| How it started pic.twitter.com/HyKbwmAphT| | — Laura Jedeed, Space Professional (@LauraJedeed) December 21, 2020Some 100 protesters soon entered the lobby anyway, and state troopers again attempted to compel them to leave. The Salem Police Department told The Daily Beast that the streets surrounding the Capitol building had been closed and residents were being asked to avoid the area if possible due to the ongoing protest.“I’m here to support the constitutional rights of people and of Oregon business [owners.] These people are unemployed and their lives are being ruined by this situation and most importantly by a government that seems to have taken totalitarian views,” one protester who would identify himself only by his first name, Duane, told The Daily Beast.Around 10 a.m., troopers from inside the building began to push protesters toward the north door. More than a dozen officers were also outside, f