Portlanders love a good social media throwdown and President Donald Trump’s characterizations of Portland as “war ravaged” invited the onslaught. In a parade of hilarious video clips and memes, Portlanders have poked fun at both Trump and the city’s quirky reputation, with satirical wartime posts bemoaning shortages of almond milk and warning that militant knitters are at the ready. With their lighthearted humor, Portlanders are displaying the quirk and creativity so deeply ingrained in the city’s culture, while showing just how unfounded Trump’s claims are.
Unfortunately, however, Trump’s ire isn’t contained to social media. Over the objections of Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek, Trump is seeking to federalize and deploy 200 Oregon National Guard members in Portland due in part to “a threat of rebellion,” as The Oregonian/OregonLive’s Maxine Bernstein reported. While a federal judge has blocked a federal deployment for now, the Department of Justice plans to immediately appeal the order.
Amid the uncertainty, Portlanders must pause and recognize how much is at stake as the country heads toward the midterm elections when voters will decide whether America is on the right path. This is not just about protesting inhumane immigration enforcement or defending Oregon from federal overreach. Trump’s military ploy to suppress one block of protests is yet another page from his playbook of bulldozing rights and norms while insisting such action is justified. Portland’s response must help show the rest of the country how wrong he is.
That starts with Portland city elected officials, who must counsel calm among Portlanders and resist the urge to whip up sentiment. Leadership means guiding people to the outcome that serves the community best – not showboating or escalating a tense situation. The goal must be to maintain Portland’s control over public safety and give the federal government no argument for taking over.
In this case, the best offense may be no offense. Let TV cameras capture images of complete calm outside the ICE facility. Let them show the protesters in chicken and frog costumes and Portland’s funny protest signs. Let them show people simply sitting – not engaged in behavior that viewers could interpret as anything but peaceful.
Second, the mayor and City Council must reinforce Portland Police’s authority to step up their presence at protests and quickly intervene if any criminal behavior occurs. They must understand that protecting public safety is not the same as supporting immigration enforcement. Police intervention is becoming more critical as Trump’s attention has breathed new life into the anti-ICE demonstrations, drawing left-wing and right-wing agitators alike, including some from out of state. Portland has become a focal point for anyone who’s itching for a fight.
Police, whose protest response has evolved considerably since 2020, must also be given the resources necessary to manage protests and keep people safe. If they are unable to do so, the city will be paving the way for federal authorities to take on that role – for 60 days or possibly longer – while giving the rest of the country a false picture of what has been happening here.
Third, if the federal government is successful in federalizing Oregon National Guard members to support the ICE building, protesters must remember that these “federal troops” are Oregon civilians who put their personal lives on hold to respond to emergencies that most of us would not ever want to deal with. These are the people who battle blazes in Oregon’s ever-lengthening wildfire season; help evacuate families and run search-and-rescue operations; respond to flooding disasters; and pitch in on weekend community clean-ups. That doesn’t even include the many overseas deployments over decades to real war zones – not the social media kind. Oregon National Guard members are our neighbors, not our enemy.
And finally, don’t let people twist this into something it’s not. Conservative influencers are highlighting images of our homelessness crisis to counter elected leaders’ insistence that federal troops aren’t needed. But Trump isn’t sending troops to deal with homelessness, so it’s unclear how this is relevant. Portlanders don’t deny the grim reality of any of the emergencies that our city is facing. That’s why voters elected a mayor who is laser-focused on getting people sheltered and why taxpayers are pouring money into a variety of solutions. While many of us might want faster progress, Portland is confronting its challenges and deserves the same deference to local policymaking that other communities receive.
Similarly, some of Portland’s progressives are claiming that Trump’s crackdown is somehow a result of Portlanders’ calling out the city’s problems and advocating for the city to do more. Portlanders should dismiss such reductive reasoning that seems to channel some of the same all-or-nothing mindset described above. People can love this city without having to declare that everything is awesome. They can feel strongly about Portland’s autonomy to make its own decisions at the same time they urge action to ensure its sustainability. And slow progress in one area does not indicate failure in all.
Trump picked Portland for a reason, and it’s not because military action is justified. This historical moment is about more than Portland. It’s on our shoulders to make this a moment that keeps proving Trump wrong.