How to Stop an American Terrorist
An Interview With Two Armed Community Defenders in Eugene, Oregon
In downtown Eugene, Oregon, on October 21st at approximately 3:15pm, a white, GMC Sierra 2500 pickup truck sporting a Gadsden flag pulled into the intersection at East 8th Avenue and Pearl Street blocking a protest march led by a pro-Palestine rally of around 200. The driver (looking like a dumbass) donned a Guy Faux mask, long trench coat, and appeared armed and dangerous. The man preceded to exit his vehicle, fire a couple rounds from what was later described by police as a “splatter ball gun” only to be pulled up on by two community defenders armed with real guns. I reached out and was able to get an interview with both community defenders after the incident.
Thousands of citizens world-wide have gathered at pro-Palestine Solidarity Demonstrations over the last two weeks to condemn Israel’s indiscriminate carpet bombing of Gaza where currently (as of October 23) the Gaza Ministry of Health reports that 5,087 have been killed (since October 7), with women and children making up 62% of fatalities. This doesn’t include the countless number of people missing, unreported, or trapped beneath the rubble.
The carpet bombing and blockading of electricity, food, fuel, medical aid, water, and other resources in Gaza remain ongoing as Israel prepares for a ground invasion. The current war between Israel and Hamas was initiated in response to the latter’s atrocious terrorist attacks inflicted on military personnel and Israeli citizens across the Gazan Envelope of Southern Israel. Hamas, a Shia Islamic political and militant organization, has controlled the Gaza Strip since 2006. On October 7th, what was considered an impenetrable security border was breached by Hamas forces, preceding the mass murder of at least 1,400 people, including the kidnapping over 200 hostages. It took nearly 72 hours for the IDF to re-secure the area.
Some governments, news outlets, and people have associated pro-Palestine demonstrations as siding with Hamas and excusing the horrible actions that took place on October 7th. There are others that perceive these rally’s as antisemitic.
Rally goers claim that it has nothing to do with Hamas, but the genocide taking place in Gaza as Israel bombs them 24/7 with the support of Western governments including the United States.
There is a deep history, and the recent violence is only a chapter in one of the bloodiest, ongoing conflicts in the world.
In the United States, the tension is palpable.
In the northern suburbs of Chicago, a man fires a shot into the air while another pepper-sprays pro-Palestinian demonstrators near an Israel solidarity event.
In Minneapolis, witnesses reported a vehicle drive through the crowd of a pro-Palestinian rally as well as the sound of a gunshot.
In downtown Eugene, Oregon at a pro-Palestine Demonstration, two armed community defenders were invited by name by their community to deescalate any conflicts and respond to threats when needed. Within an hour of the demonstration, the two rapidly responded to a threat involving a man firing what the police later refered to as a “splatter ball gun” made to look real. As they ordered the perpetrator to drop the gun and remove his mask, it appeared to be none other than Johnathan James Wisbey, aka…Mr. Bones.
I reached out to both men who intercepted Wisbey’s threat to hear their side of the story. They both wish to remain anonymous so I refer to them as CD (Community Defender) 1 and 2.
RK: So according to police reports, the guy had a splatter ball gun?
CD1: It looked like a pepper ball gun to me when I was in the (police) cruiser looking at it. I didn’t see any ‘Splatter Ball’ markings. That’s a brand name. I’ve looked through their products and it does not look like one of their products unless the guy altered it to look more real.
But if you do look up the topic of “splatter ball gun” you do find a lot of stories about other justified beatings and killings where the receiver had a splatter ball gun. So that might have been police trying to pad the narrative with some more generic use of the word “splatter ball gun”.
RK: Can you walk me through your perspective from the moment the truck pulled up until after the guy was in custody? What exactly happened?
CD1: I was walking down the street in front of the procession when I noticed a Gadsden Flag bearing truck come to a stop at the interception in front of us, blocking the direction of the march. The driver donned a (Guy Fawkes) mask and put what appeared to be a pistol on the dash in a way that myself and those with me perceived as brandishing. He then stared at the crowd approaching and waited. Periodically, he lifting his gun up off the dash. It was at this point that I started to direct attendees to move over to the other side of the road and away from the front of his truck so that it would be harder for him to run people over if he reversed into the crowd. I also wanted people to be further away from his person. I saw an attendee pop his rear passenger tire with a Halligan so I began rushing to the front of his truck. As I did, the driver got out with his gun and started firing indiscriminately into the crowd. Then, myself and a comrade next to me drew our concealed pistols and rounded the front of his vehicle. We set a hasty L shaped counter-ambush. I took the truck’s B-pillar as backstop and began demanding that he drop the gun. He eventually did and I kicked it away from him
Police arrived so I dropped my magazine and threw it, then we laid spread eagle on the ground. The police detained everyone. I was prepared thanks to my concealed carry classes. After giving them my CHL and state ID the police put me in the back of a cruiser and informed me that it was an airsoft gun and that no one got shot. Then they put the driver’s weapon on the back shelf of the cruiser which I could see through the glass. The magazine appeared to be a pepper ball magazine judging by the internals, but the weapon looked like an MP Shield with a large barrel. Attendees somehow caught the notion that we were either cops or anti-Palestine and were yelling at us that we were terrorists, so that was nice. The police told us that we did a good job and let us go.
We are now seeking legal counsel in accordance with our training. There’s no telling what the driver will try to do. Libertarians are known for what’s called “paper terrorism”.
RK: Paper terrorism?
CD2: Like, jamming people up over frivolous legal action.
RK: Who was the passenger? His wife?
CD2: She hasn’t been publicly identified to my knowledge.
CD1: She has a part of his rap sheet.
RK: I read a report that somebody broke there leg during the incident due to being trampled by others in the crowd. Is that true?
CD1: Yes. She has a fundraiser, I think.
RK: Why did some of the protesters start calling you terrorists?
CD1: Various reasons, mostly because of an individual with a dog going around and cop/bad jacketing us. Dude was a wrecker.
CD2: I didn’t know they said that. I was in a squad car. When I was released, a small group had stayed to make sure we got out ok. They were very grateful.
The officer I spoke with said they had spoken to the crowd and explained we were the “good Samaritans”, in his words.
It definitely felt weird to be told by the cops I’d done the right thing!
RK: So legally, as of right now, you two are in the clear?
CD2: They can always go back and file charges, but I was released without charge and my pistol and ammo were returned to me in separate bags.
RK: Do you two have previous experience of armed defense at a protest?
CD1: Extensive. We are often expressly asked to attend actions due to our level of training. In some cases, some of us are hired as official contracted security, in other cases people just feel good when they see us. We are deeply connected to our community and have a good rapport with a majority of local leftist organizations.
CD2: This is my 2nd defensive display of a firearm. I don’t remember the exact date, but it happened only 2 blocks to the east at the intersection between Whole Foods and the Federal Courthouse. It was similar in some ways. It was a Black Lives Matter protest that had been counter protested by a group of men armed with wooden shields with screws sticking out, wasp spray, and a flag used as a spear.
One counter protester fired into the air. He quickly ran off and was chased down and detained by brave protesters until the cops arrested him.
After this all went down, the crowd began to march and was immediately confronted by a man and passenger in a truck with Idaho plates. He threatened to run us over if we didn’t move before the lights changed. Someone kicked his truck, and he got out with a gun and waived it around and threatened us.
RK: What kind of armed training do you have?
CD1: The same training that’s available to everyone else. Some from state certified defense carry instructors. Some from independent competition instructors. Some from independent tactical instructors. We also get regular medical and de-escalation training as well.
RK: How long have you been doing community defense? What inspired you to get involved in your community in that way?
CD2: I got my CHL and first pistol when I was 21 and I carried with the intent to prevent harm against myself and those around me. I think reading sci-fi and fantasy growing up gave me a strong sense of agency and responsibility to take action against injustices. I let my license lapse until the Portland MAX stabbings. That motivated me to get trained up. I know I would have done the same thing as those brave people who stood up to a violent racist, but I wanted to be hard to kill. After that I was privileged to train with Mia and her sibling Charles in 2017, and by chance I was reintroduced to Mia after the pandemic hit and began to train with her and her comrades and to protect marches from the violent right.
(Shameless Plug: In Popular Front Magazine (Issue 1), I interviewed Mia and spent a weekend with her Trans Gun Club and other armed community defenders. You can read and listen to the article at Patreon.com/PopularFront (must subscribe to read) or you can buy a hard copy of the magazine (if any are left in print).)
CD1: About 9 years ago, I realized how active white supremacists were in my area so I decided to take a more hands on approach to making a better world than I had previously.
RK: I’m sure you two have read about other pro-Palestine demonstrations being terrorized by gun fire, pepper spray, and attacks such as those seen in Chicago and Minneapolis in the last week.
CD1: Yes. It could have been like that here in Eugene. We’ve seen too many of our comrades shot, stabbed, clubbed, and killed by just being at these events or organizing. The stakes are really this high and your typical privileged liberal often fails to recognize that. It’s easy to chastise self-defense when you’ve never had to defend yourself from an existential threat.
RK: So, do you think all demonstrations should have armed community defense?
CD1: Yes, but you need to personally know and trust them. Community Defenders aren’t born, they are made. Made through not only a consistent and long history of training, but also a consistent and long history of building community relationships and trust. Community Defenders are never self-elected, they are designated. Community Defenders are teachers, they are friends, they are medics, they are mutual aid organizers. Most of what they do doesn’t involve walking around armed. It’s being a valuable resource to their community, whatever that community may need.
We saw during the BLM 2020 protests how much police will help fascists set traps and ambushes for protestors. Eugene Police Department were at their chilliest I’ve ever seen them that day only because we weren’t protesting THEM. They act with gang mentality, and I’ve seen both sides of that fence up close due to my position within the community. Rarely are they super down with whatever it is we are doing, which depends on the focus of the event. Most often they have the same attitude as some of our most toxic supporters and opponents, one that is looking for a reason to mag dump into someone.
Having heard the private conversations of so many police, be it by FOIA or in the back of the squad car, its painfully obvious to me that EPD police the public in strict accordance with their own personal and organizational politics. Saturday, they called us upstanding citizens and the
“good guys” because on that day we weren’t the communists, queers, and anarchists who were challenging their authority. If this had been a rally for black lives, I would have been dusted by those cops.
RK: Thanks for being down for an interview. Is there anything else y’all would like to add?
CD1: Look at the plans for Cop City in Atlanta, Georgia. The IDF (Israel Defense Forces) and multiple American police organizations have a training pact. We don’t need to give the IDF the world’s most advanced MOUT facility to train in.
RK: Are you referring to the GILEE program?
CD1: Yes.
CD2: Ultimately, my goal is for every community that’s under threat to have the tools, resources, and solidarity necessary to defend against whatever threats they face. I recognize it's harder for some communities more than others to achieve that, and it's usually the most oppressed that face greater consequences and higher costs to being armed. I’m committed to do what I can to help, whether it’s physical defense, finding resources, or providing training. John Brown Gun Club is a classic example of the kind of solidarity I’m interested in.
Johnathon James Wisbey is currently being held at Lane County Jail. He’s been charged with 1st Degree Menacing, 2nd Degree Disorderly Conduct, and Bias Crime in the 1st Degree.
Wisbey’s youtube account, @Mr.420Wholesalers, has a series of videos dating between 9–14 years ago. Under the pseudonym, Mr. Bones, he and his partner, Mary Ann (last name unknown) have shared quite the drug fueled, paranoiac adventures up and down the Pacific Coast. Mr. Wisbey see’s himself as a detective of sorts. A fan of Infowars, he sees the New World Order everywhere he goes. Whether he’s at a Safeway in Coos Bay, detecting Fukushima fall out in cheese or harassing medical workers over vaccines for the Swine Flu, Mr. Bones is on the case. In 2018, the couple were arrested after attempting to make a “citizen’s arrest”. In a youtube video, Wisbey is seen donning a chain-mail hood, black ski mask, and wraparound sunglasses while posing with a gun. This gun would get Wisbey into more trouble due to previous felonies that barred him from owning gun. (This might explain why he’s using a “splatter ball gun”).
In court, Wisbey’s lawyer, Heidi Larson, said, “My client’s bizarre behavior can be explained by other things, besides his addiction, your honor, but for the present we won’t be offering any defense to the charge.”
It is obvious that Wisbey is not of sound mind and struggles with drug addiction. He also appears to be impressionable to ridiculous conspiracy theories such as those espoused by Alex Jones on Infowars.com, which he repeatedly flashes on the screen in his youtube series.
If Wisbey had been armed with a glock instead of a “splatter ball gun” on Saturday, people could have been shot and killed. Fortunately, two armed community defenders not only stopped Wisbey, but de-escalated the situation from spiraling out of control. In a country known internationally for gun violence and mass shootings, the only injury sustained from this confrontation was a broken leg. And to that unfortunate lady, get well soon.
xoxo
(As I’m typing this, reports of a mass shooting in Lewiston, Maine appear in a notification on my phone. Stay safe out there.)
