Portland's mayor demanded ICE leave the city after federal agents used tear gas, pepper balls and rubber bullets against a largely peaceful daytime protest that included children. Witnesses described chaotic scenes as families and vulnerable people fled; paramedics treated injured demonstrators while police made no arrests. The incident is part of a string of nationwide protests over the Trump administration's immigration enforcement, and in response the mayor announced a fee for detention facilities that deploy chemical agents and vowed federal accountability.
Portland Mayor Orders ICE Out After Federal Agents Tear-Gas Protesters — Children Among Those Affected
Portland's mayor demanded that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) withdraw from the city after federal officers fired tear gas at a crowd — which included small children — outside an ICE facility during a daytime demonstration that local leaders and participants described as peaceful.
Witnesses reported that federal personnel used tear gas, pepper balls and rubber bullets as thousands of marchers reached the South Waterfront facility on Saturday. Erin Hoover Barnett, a former OregonLive reporter who attended the protest, said she was about 100 yards (91 meters) from the building when she saw what she described as "two guys with rocket launchers" begin spraying the crowd with gas.
"To be among parents frantically trying to tend to little children in strollers, people using motorized carts trying to navigate as the rest of us staggered in retreat, unsure of how to get to safety, was terrifying," Barnett wrote in an email to OregonLive.
Mayor's Response
Portland Mayor Keith Wilson called the daytime march peaceful, saying "the vast majority of those present violated no laws, made no threat and posed no danger" to federal personnel. In a strongly worded statement, Wilson addressed ICE directly:
"To those who continue to work for ICE: Resign. To those who control this facility: Leave."
He accused federal agents of using violence and "trampling the Constitution," saying those actions had "lost all legitimacy and replaced it with shame." The mayor also announced plans to impose a fee on detention facilities that deploy chemical agents.
On-the-Ground Aftermath
The Portland Fire Bureau dispatched paramedics to treat demonstrators at the scene. Local police monitored the crowd, and officials said no arrests were made on Saturday.
National Context
The Portland protest was one of several taking place nationwide in response to the Trump administration's immigration enforcement. Demonstrations have spread to cities including Minneapolis — where, according to local reports, federal agents in recent weeks killed two residents, Alex Pretti and Renee Good — and nearby Eugene, Oregon, where federal officers deployed tear gas after protesters attempted to enter the Federal Building downtown. Eugene police declared a riot and ordered the crowd to disperse.
President's Statement
On social media Saturday, President Donald Trump said policing protests is primarily the responsibility of local law enforcement, but added that he had instructed Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem to ensure federal agents remain vigilant in protecting U.S. government facilities. He posted:
"Please be aware that I have instructed ICE and/or Border Patrol to be very forceful in this protection of Federal Government Property. ... If there is, those people will suffer an equal, or more, consequence."
Mayor Wilson vowed accountability: "The federal government must, and will, be held accountable," he said, adding a direct rebuke to those who ordered the use of force: "To those who continue to make these sickening decisions, go home, look in a mirror, and ask yourselves why you have gassed children."
This incident underscores tensions between federal enforcement actions and local officials and communities, and it may prompt further local policy steps and legal scrutiny regarding the use of chemical agents at civilian protests.
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