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Portland Police have deployed stun grenades and rubber bullets on protesters near Pioneer Courthouse late tonight, after anarchists smashed the windows of shops in downtown and the Pearl District in protest of the Donald Trump presidency.
The use of so called "flashbangs"—loud explosive devices designed to stun and disperse crowds—came near midnight, and police said they were deployed as protesters threw projectiles at officers.
Video by Mike Bivins
At least one reporter, with WW's news partner KATU-TV, was hit by a rubber bullet, apparently fired by riot police.
The confrontations have placed Portland, once famed as "Little Beirut" for its opposition to George H.W. Bush, again in the national spotlight, with the Associated Press declaring this city the center of America's anti-Trump feeling.
Video by Mike Bivins
The police crackdown comes in response to what the bureau deemed a "riot," as masked anarchists wielding baseball bats smashed windows at stores, banks and a Toyota dealership.
Earlier tonight, those anti-Trump protests drew as many as 4,000 people outraged by the election of Trump. "We don't respect the president-elect," they chanted.
But the peaceful protests were overrun by anarchists—mostly young, white men, who shattered the windows of the downtown Nike Store and other businesses. The anarchists were repeatedly confronted by protest organizers, who decried the vandalism and asked their supporters to avoid it.
Photos by Christopher Onstott.
Willamette Week