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About 50 demonstrators gathered peacefully outside Eugene’s federal building a day after unrest damaged the plaza and prompted a forceful federal response. The city’s Independent Police Auditor has since opened a preliminary investigation into Eugene police conduct after officers declared a riot and left the scene.
This story was updated to include new details about a Eugene police audit.
Kate Cassidy held a “Justice for Alex Pretti” sign in one hand and balanced on a cane with the other.
“I’m here to stand up, to take a stand for democracy,” said Cassidy, 77, who has lived in Eugene for about half her life. “For the loss of freedom in this nation and for the loss of attention to the laws by the highest power elected in this nation.”
Cassidy stood among about 50 people early in the afternoon Saturday, Jan. 31 at the corner of Seventh Avenue and Pearl Street, where they peacefully demonstrated against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations.
Behind her, crews worked behind yellow crime-scene tape to clean up broken glass from Friday night’s unrest between protesters and officers at the Eugene Federal Building plaza.
Workers cut sheets of plywood to board up windows around the rotating doors at the building’s two entrances on Pearl and High streets. The plywood covered intact windows and patched shattered ones where federal officers — some from Portland — wearing black and camouflage uniforms had stood behind the night before.
Friday night’s unrest
Around that 6:30 p.m., the Eugene Police Department declared a riot. They then left the area as federal agents emerged from the building and deployed chemical agents to disperse the crowd.
The chemicals aloft were so heavy and strong that people immediately cleared the plaza, some running into the street and narrowly missing traffic. Gas drifted as far as two blocks away and entered the Hult Center, where patrons began coughing, according to Eugene police and a Eugene Symphony member.
Eugene Mayor Kaarin Knudson described it as a “painful time” in an Instagram post late Friday night.
“We are continuously working to de-escalate situations where our community members may be at risk,” she wrote.
Some constituents expressed disappointment with the statement in the comments.
Audit launched
Complaints were formally filed with Eugene’s Independent Police Auditor, prompting the office to open a preliminary investigation.
While the auditor’s office does not have the authority to review the conduct of federal officers, it will examine whether Eugene police violated any policies, procedures or relevant statutes, resolutions or laws, according to a press release sent to media Saturday.
The press release did not specify the complaints.
In the post, Knudson “expressed appreciation” for Eugene police while calling on residents to keep protests peaceful.
“We can rise to the occasion without resorting to violence,” Knudson’s post continued in part. “Mass, peaceful protest is a powerful and durable mechanism for change — we see this from Minneapolis, and across our country’s history.”
Residents like Cassidy also feel the protest activity turned violent, but so too was the federal officers’ response, she said. Reflecting on her own lived experience as a white woman, Cassidy said she could not fully know or speak to the experiences of others and why they were driven to act the way they did.
Saturday’s gathering marked the fifth straight day of demonstrations since federal officers unexpectedly clashed with people Tuesday, many of whom were singing and quietly protesting.
Cassidy, who will turn 78 soon, said she hopes the nation continues to stand up for its values — and that progress will mean fewer reasons to return to the street.
“I hope I’m still not standing here,” she said, turning to the street and holding up her sign.