As the summer of 2020 draws to a close, it’s nearly impossible to recap the rollercoaster ride that is the national narrative. But one story making national news has its cradle here in Portland, where federal officers were sent to protect the downtown courthouse, resulting in an escalation of protests that had been simmering for over 2 months at that point. Born of nationwide protests demanding systemic change in the police force after the death of George Floyd, the Portland protests have become a fixture throughout the last few months of the civic unrest boiling under the surface of our quarantined population. However, little attention seems to be getting paid to the people who live in the battlefield that has become Portland’s downtown streets.
The houseless population in Portland, caught in between protestors and police, has suffered disproportionately from the repeated use of tear gas, flashbangs and other riot dispersal technologies in the places they live. Reports from VICE, Willamette Week and the Oregonian detail the situations people find themselves in, such as leaving behind all their belongings to flee flashbangs and advancing crowds or finding themselves coughing and wheezing when they try to return to a regular safe spot later. Even people in homes are reporting that the walls and windows can't fully keep the chemical agent out. Some reports have caught tear gas canisters going off in homeless encampments unaffiliated with the protest, covering not only the living space but the people and their possessions with heavy, irritating chemicals. The amplification of harassment and environmental dangers has only spiked with the careless and sometimes malicious use of these devices.
Besides the acute impacts of being chased from their own places of living, Portland’s homeless are suffering from the environmental impacts of living in streets that are routinely tear-gassed. Tear gas is a heavy chemical irritant that sinks downwards after being deployed, creating a sharp cough for days after deployment. Oregon Senators Ron Wyden and Jeff Merkley, along with Representatives Earl Blumenauer and Suzanne Bonamici, have already petitioned the EPA for a comprehensive review of what this type of damage can do long-term, since the effects aren’t well recorded. Meanwhile, homeless populations in Portland are already suffering inordinately from COVID-19, a respiratory illness that can only be compounded by exposure to tear gas or other toxic airborne particles. Before deploying tear gas as a short term way to disperse protesters, federal agents and PPB must both factor in that wanton overuse has direct effects on our most vulnerable populations.
- Mark Fogerson
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