Mass Shooting in Portland, Oregon
Last weekend, a mass shooting in Portland, Oregon took the life of June Knightly (60), a mother, wife, and beloved member of her community. 5 others were wounded, 3 of them in critical condition. The alleged gunman, Benjamin Jeffrey Smith (43), was wounded by return fire. Portland Police have misled the public about details concerning the shooting and continue to withhold information. Antifascist and BLM activist have been demonized by far right propogandist Andy Ngo and Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, and it may be worth considering if their actions had influence on the gunman’s actions.
It happened on February 19th, around 8pm. Approximately 50 antifascist activists met at Normandale Park in NE Portland for a weekly march in solidarity with MPLS for the murder of Amir Locke on February 2nd by Minneapolis Police serving a no-knock warrant. The march was led by Letha Winston, mother of Patrick Kimmons, another black man killed by Portland Police in 2018.
Journalist Alex Zielinski of Portland Mercury spoke with one of the victims of the shooting. The woman said that she and three other women were standing near NE 55 and NE Hassalo when a man exited his house and angrily walked towards them. (They were volunteering as corkers. Corkers protect demonstrators from motorist and instigators that may want to cause harm.)
We were unarmed and actively working to de-escalate him and get him to leave. He wasn’t threatened by us. He walked up to us yelling about protestors in his neighborhood and opened fire within 90 seconds.” (Portland Mercury)
She was shot within a distance of 10 feet. The shots grazed her arm and knee. Another woman was shot in the stomach, leg, and chest, and another hit in the neck. June Knightly was fatally shot. 2 men ran to the scene and after receiving fire, returned fire, wounding Smith and containing what may have been a much larger mass shooting.
“We show up voluntarily to put ourselves between people exercising their first amendment rights and outsiders who would kill them for doing so. We did our jobs.” (Portland Mercury)
June Knightly, survived by her wife and son, was a resident of NE Portland. According to her wife, she had just recovered from her second fight with cancer and was awaiting a knee replacement. She used a cane to get around. In 2020, she began her involvement in activism with the BLM community during the infamous Portland Protest. Known as ‘T-Rex’, her aid, comfort, and support of her community touched a lot of people. A memorial for her at Normandale Park reads, “You were truly a beam of love and protection.”
This contrast with PPB’s statements about the incident:
A preliminary investigation into the February 19, 2022 shooting near the intersection of Northeast 55th Avenue and Northeast Hassalo Street indicates this incident started with a confrontation between an armed homeowner and armed protesters.
The scene was extremely chaotic, and a number of witnesses were uncooperative with responding officers. Most people on scene left without talking to police. Detectives believe a large number of people either witnessed what happened or recorded the incident as it unfolded. This is a very complicated incident, and investigators are trying to put this puzzle together without having all the pieces.
This information was quickly spread by journalist across major news outlets. More devious actors, such as Andy Ngo, ran with speculations.
Other far right outlets carried this narrative forward. Some adding more misinformation. One of the victims had a go pro that recorded the entire incident, which was confiscated by PPB. Do they not have the pieces to the puzzle or do they just not like the way they fit?
According to research activist/citizen journalist @Johnnthelefty (twitter), Smith has a history of violence. He’s vocally talked about killing Antifa and BLM protesters online via telegram and reddit.
According to the Furry community of Portland, he is a gun fanatic who sells guns. He was kicked out of the community for his alt-right ties and racism. Oregonian reporter Shane D. Kavanaugh and Maxine Bernstein spoke with Smith’s roommate/family. According to them, he had become fixated on Black Lives Matter protests, Covid restrictions, and the city’s homeless problem. According to his YouTube account, he’s also a fan of Andy Ngo.
Mayor Ted Wheeler’s comments on the matter are not only banal, but also misleading.
“While many of the details of last night’s shooting near Normandale Park are unclear, we do know one thing for sure: Our community is dealing with the sadness of another senseless act of gun violence.”
But it wasn’t a senseless act of gun violence. It was politically motivated. You have witnesses, recorded evidence, casualties, and the gunman. Instead of addressing the affected community, Wheeler thanks Chief Lovell and the Portland Police officers “for the careful work they are doing and recognize the exhaustion they must be experiencing.” Then, parroting PPB, he adds, “I am also asking the community to cooperate with the investigation.”
But can our community trust our police and mayor? 2 years ago, Portland Police waged a war against BLM and antifascist activists. They fumed Portland streets with poisonous gasses, physically abused, harassed, and mocked protesters, medics, reporters and by-standers, and made mass arrests. I’m reminded of one of Wheeler’s comments he made in reference to the BLM/antifascist community that year:
“There are ways that our other community partners and institutions can be helpful in making it crystal clear that the city of Portland will not tolerate criminal destruction or violence,” Wheeler continued. “Those who are engaged in it, let’s make it hurt them a little bit.”
Last weekend was not a senseless act of violence, but a deliberate attack on 6 activists, politically motivated, and influenced by far right propogandist like Andy Ngo. An unarmed, handicapped woman was murdered. It is likely that if not for return fire by other activists there would be a lot more casualties. If not for the protest medics in the crowd, it is likely there would have been more than one fatality. If not for these brave women serving as corkers that night, the shooter probably would have carried out a larger, more deadly mass shooting. And the Portland Police along with Mayor Ted Wheeler’s approach towards this “investigation” is beyond lackluster, its suspicious.
