On Feb. 28, after an anti-ICE protest hosted by the Party for Socialism and Liberation and several labor unions, a smaller, separate group of approximately 60 protesters held a “No Business as Usual” protest.
Protesters say the purpose of the event was to disrupt daily life and remind the community that there is no business as usual as long as Immigration and Customs Enforcement is active in Eugene, in Oregon and nationwide.
The “No Business as Usual” protest started at about 5 pm, and over the course of the night, one protester was hit by a car, federal agents pointed guns at unarmed protesters and arrested two minors at the Federal Building in Eugene.
“For me, I’m here so that this isn’t happening in silence,” said one protester, who Eugene Weekly agreed could remain anonymous due to fear of prosecution. “If we’re quiet and we’re silent, they [ICE] get to do their job in the secret way they want to and this brings awareness to it.”
Many of the evening protesters were wearing black bloc, a tactic used to conceal a protester’s identity. During the daytime labor union protest, protesters peacefully held signs, chanted and listened to several speakers from different labor unions preach solidarity among the working class. Daytime protesters were not seen wearing black bloc.
During the later protest, the group blocked several intersections including East 6th Avenue, where one protester, identified by Eugene police as Shane Novak, age 19, was struck and injured by a vehicle that drove through the line of protesters at 6 pm. Protest medics rushed to aid the injured protester who was transferred to a hospital by emergency medical services.
Novak was later cited for criminal mischief in the second degree and disorderly conduct, according to a press release from the Eugene Police Department.
“There were people protesting peacefully in the streets and somebody in a black SUV with no license plates drove straight into the crowd,” said protester Justin Burns. “Whoever got hit, they were on the windshield and they were dragged about 200 feet.”
At least two other vehicles made contact with protesters while attempting to drive through the line of protesters on East 6th Avenue, but no further injuries were reported. After blocking East 6th Avenue and Pearl Street, the protesters marched up Pearl Street to East 5th Avenue, then back towards the downtown Eugene Federal Building where the protest had started.
There, protesters blocked Pearl Street and East 7th Avenue before marching towards the Graduate Hotel.
At the hotel, protesters stood in front of the entrance, chanting things like “ICE out!” and “Whose streets, our streets.” The protesters apparently approached the Graduate Hotel over allegations, which have yet to be substantiated, that the hotel has housed ICE agents.
After approximately 30 minutes of blocking the entrance to the Graduate, protesters marched back to the Eugene Federal Building.
There, the group reduced in size, but around 30 protesters remained, blocking the vehicular entrance to the building. Two protesters were seen throwing cans of soup and water bottles towards the cars in the building’s parking area.
Soup cans are a commonly used projectile by protesters ever since President Donald Trump popularized its use in a quote where he spoke of protesters bringing “soup for my family,” to throw at law enforcement.
Eugene Weekly did not witness any actual damage to vehicles.
At 7:35 pm, federal agents inside the parking area played a message over a loudspeaker ordering protesters to depart the area. The protesters, who were standing on the public sidewalk, ignored these instructions. At 7:45 pm, a group of over 20 agents rushed out of the building, deploying flash bang devices and pushing protesters back from the vehicle entrance.
A group of federal agents blocked Pearl Street at the intersection of Pearl Street and East 6th Avenue before running down the sidewalk of East 6th Avenue to arrest two protesters who were both under the age of 18.
At least one federal agent was holding an AR-15, and pointed it at unarmed protesters several times. At 7:55 pm, the agents retreated back inside the building with the two young protesters in custody.
“I heard the feds have live weaponry, which is scary, but on the other hand it shows they’re scared more than anything,” said another protester who also requested anonymity out of fear of prosecution. “It’s so important to be here protesting, even if it’s just one person.”
At 11 pm, at least one of the arrested protesters was released and the small crowd remaining dispersed shortly after. The parents of the released protester said via a sign language interpreter that federal agents told them both protesters were charged with destruction of federal property.
The other protester, whose parents are unhoused according to protesters, was held longer as federal agents tried to make contact with their legal guardian.