According to the CLDC and BU, the lawsuit has been amended to “include claims of unlawful spying and viewpoint discrimination in violation of the First Amendment and a little used Oregon Law, ORS 181A.250.”
On Aug. 3, Black Unity returned to Jesse Maine Memorial Park to protest the Springfield Police Department–and the so-called Springfield Neighborhood Watch–hosted “National Night Out in your Neighborhood Park.”
The investigation was conducted by Rick Braziel, a longtime police officer–including a five-year stint as the Chief of the Sacramento Police Department–and current Vice Chair of the California Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training.
The complaint says that SPD’s actions included unlawful detention, colluding with and informing violent counter-protesters about Plaintiff’s plans. It also says that SPD [conspired] with violent counter-protesters to amass and use force against Plaintiff’s.
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Black Unity and their followers were met by counter-protesters, including some members of the local so-called “patriot’s militia” which led to scuffles and at least one incident in which protesters were attacked with mace.
There’s a long history of right-wing militia activity in Oregon, and the areas around Eugene are no different. For as long as Eugene has claimed itself as a progressive paradise, there have been neo-Nazis and white supremacists and militiamen around to counter that claim.
