Anti-Trump efforts surge
PORTLAND, Ore. — Another night of nationwide protests against Donald Trump’s election came to a head in Portland, where thousands marched and some smashed store windows, lit firecrackers and sparked a dumpster blaze. Police termed the protest a riot and used “less lethal munitions” to help clear the streets.
Some 4,000 protesters surged into the downtown area late Thursday night with chants like “we reject the president-elect!”
Officers began physically pushing back against the crowd that at times threw objects at them as midnight approached, arresting several people and using flash-bang devices and types of smoke or tear gas to force people to disperse.
After several orders to leave, police said officers used “less lethal munitions,” such as pepper spray and rubber projectiles. Live video footage showed officers firing what appeared to be the non-lethal items.
Around the country from New York to Chicago to California, in red states as well as blue, hundreds of demonstrators marched through streets, many for the third straight night though in somewhat smaller numbers.
Trump himself fired back late Thursday, tweeting: “Just had a very open and successful presidential election. Now professional protesters, incited by the media, are protesting. Very unfair!”
In Denver, protesters managed to shut down Interstate 25 near downtown Denver briefly Thursday night. Police said demonstrators made their way onto the freeway and traffic was halted in the northbound and southbound lanes for about a half-hour. Protesters also briefly shut down highways in Minneapolis and Los Angeles.
In San Francisco, high school students marched chanting “not my president” and holding signs urging a Donald Trump eviction. They waved rainbow banners and Mexican flags, as bystanders in the heavily Democratic city high-fived the marchers from the sidelines.
In New York, a large group of demonstrators once again gathered outside Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. They chanted angry slogans and waved banners bearing anti-Trump messages.
