Following the killing of George Floyd — when Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd’s neck for eight minutes and 46 seconds — communities around the world have gathered to protest police brutality. Eugene is no different, with protests taking place daily since May 29. There have been riots, splitting of groups, and conflicting responses from police. Here is a summary of the past few weeks, starting on day one.
Friday, May 29
What started as a peaceful protest turned into what the Eugene Police Department called an “unruly crowd.” Some protesters looted and started fires in shops like Five Guys and Sprint, despite other protesters yelling at them to stop. They also burned dumpsters and broke a fire hydrant.
Related: “Protesters loot shops, face off against EPD in Friday night demonstration”
EPD arrived in riot gear and ordered the crowd to disperse. Eventually, they began to fire tear gas at the protesters at around 1:30 a.m., pushing them down Broadway. Protesters and police stayed for the remainder of the night.
Saturday, May 30
Sarah Medary, Eugene’s city manager pro tem, declared a 9 p.m. curfew for the area between High Street and Monroe Street and between 13th Avenue and 4th Avenue, punishable by a fine of up to $500 and/or up to 100 days in jail.
Protests on Saturday consisted of small, scattered groups throughout Eugene.
Sunday, May 31
May 31 marked the first day of mass organized protest in Eugene. The protest, organized by Madeliene and Spencer Smith, brought over 7,000 people to march against the killing of George Floyd.
Related: “Eugene Black Lives Matter protest attracts thousands after George Floyd’s death”
The protest started on the steps of the Wayne Morse Federal Courthouse, with protesters wearing masks and holding signs. Members of the community, like Eugene NAACP President Ibrahim Coulibaly and Attorney Jessica Brown, spoke to the crowd.
“Thank you for supporting this movement,” Brown said. “It is not a choice for Black people in America. It’s not an option to not stand up when we are being slaughtered in the streets.”
Protesters moved to Alton Baker Park by way of Ferry Bridge, causing EPD to close the bridge to cars to prevent any altercations.
At the park, Eugene Mayor Lucy Vinis and Oregon Senator James Manning spoke to the crowd. There were moments of silence and spoken poetry.
However, around 250 people stayed past curfew that night. Police used tear gas and what EPD Chief Chris Skinner later referred to as “paintball guns” that shoot pellets filled with the active ingredient in traditional pepper spray to disperse the crowds.
EPD hit Eugene Weekly reporter Henry Houston with both tear gas and pellets. Houston said police laughed after he identified himself as a journalist. The curfew order explicitly exempted journalists.
Monday, June 1
Skinner hosted a press conference the next day, at which he spoke about police actions from the previous night. He said that a group of 40 to 50 individuals, some allegedly armed with hammers, were heard hitting light poles in the curfew area and left dents in a police vehicle.
Related: “Police fire pellets, tear gas at late night protesters Sunday; police chief responds”
One protester who was at the protests at the time said she heard about one person carrying a hammer, but said that the protest was peaceful.
Skinner said he was saddened by the incidents of police shooting journalists with paintball guns, and said EPD was working on a safer way for the media to be out during this time, including a possible sign-in area or more clear credentials.
The city set another curfew, from 10 p.m. Monday until 6 a.m. Tuesday, closing off much of downtown Eugene. That was later extended to include the entire city, beginning at Midnight.
Tuesday, June 2
Several hundred people gathered at the courthouse on June 2, peacefully protesting police brutality. The Black Lives Matter group marched to the Lane County Circuit Court, filling the plaza, then past the Lane County prison, through Kesey Square, before making their way back to the federal courthouse.
Related: “‘Time for Change’: Momentum continues in Eugene protests against police brutality”
Some expressed fears that the movement would die out in a few days, though the Smiths encouraged people to donate and had created a Facebook organization called the Black Led Action Coalition.
Instagram users worldwide posted pictures of a black square as a part of a social media blackout to show support for People of Color. The Smiths described it as performative activism and encouraged people to donate instead.
Wednesday, June 3
Hundreds gathered again at the courthouse to listen to Black, Indigenous and other People of Color speak. The group then marched through downtown, encouraging people to come out of their houses and march with them.
Related: “March for change, day 6: Painful stories and pleas for support”
They eventually stopped at the Lane County Jail. About 200 gathered in the street in front of the main building for a moment of silence and a candlelight vigil. In the windows of the jail, detainees watched, some waving to protesters as they spoke.
Thursday, June 4
University of Oregon board of trustees member Andrew Colas requested an emergency vote to rename Deady Hall during the June 4 board meeting. Matthew Deady, after whom the building is named, was a pro-slavery delegate to the Oregon constitutional convention, and is quoted as saying that Black people are just as much property as “horses, cattle and land.”
Related: “Breaking: UO trustee requests vote to remove name of pro-slavery delegate from Deady Hall”
There have been previous attempts to change the name by activists in 2015 and 2017, and did succeed in doing so with Dunn Hall, named after a member of the Ku Klux Klan. The activists, called the Black Student Task Force, also had a list of other demands that included having Ethnic Studies 101 as a graduation requirement and making a commitment to hiring more Black faculty.
Since Colas’ request was impromptu, the board was not able to vote on the renaming at the meeting. The board of trustees will hold another meeting, before the end of June, to vote on the renaming of Deady Hall, according to an email UO President Michael Schill sent to students on June 10.
Protesters blocked an entrance to the I-105 highway in Eugene, near West 7th Ave, staging a die-in for eight minutes and 46 seconds.
Related: “Demonstrators block highway entrance on day 7 of protests”
Friday, June 5
Skinner held a press conference, promising police reform within the department. The “carotid restraint,” which blocks airflow and blood from going to the brain, was immediately suspended from use by EPD officers — except for when lethal use of force is authorized.
Related: “Changes coming to EPD amid protests of police brutality, says Chief Skinner”
Instances of use of force against protesters and a journalist by police on May 31 are under review by an independent police auditor, who encouraged community members to continue filing complaints at their website.
Protesters marched from the Federal Courthouse to Matthew Knight Arena. Speakers called for Skinner’s resignation, as well as three reforms to curb police brutality:
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The establishment of a citizens review board to review all current employees
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The creation of strict written guides that police must follow whenever they pull a car over
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The policy change that police chiefs should be voted in instead of promoted to their position
A group within the protest became agitated during some of the speeches, breaking off from the main group and marching towards the jail, while the original group dispersed. The split group would later become its own group, called the BIPOC Liberation Collective.
Related: “Protesters call for Chief Skinner’s resignation on day 8 of protests”
Saturday, June 6
The march on June 6 happened in two areas, one at the Springfield Library and the other at the Eugene jail. The Springfield group was a BLM group, and wanted to reform the police, evident in how they asked two police officers to take a knee with them during the protest. The Eugene group, the BIPOC Liberation Collective, however, wanted to dismantle and defund the police altogether.
Related: “Two protest groups meet in Springfield Saturday, ask police to join them”
BIPOC Liberation Collective organizers called the week’s peaceful marches “parades,” after EPD blocked traffic for protesters.
Despite the disagreement between the two groups, the BLC still came to defend the BLM protesters when rumors of armed counter-protesters reached them.
About 20 officers outfitted in riot gear and black batons were present at the Springfield protest, behind a black wrought iron fence.
Sunday, June 7
The BLC marched on June 7. They stopped at Deady Hall and EPD headquarters, letting members of the crowd speak each time.
Related: “‘Say Their Names’ protesters call to dismantle the police”
Wooden boards covered the windows of EPD headquarters, decorated with notes reading statements like “heroes,” “you are loved” and “we love our first responders.” Upon arriving, the protesters took down the decorations, hung up their own signs and used markers and spray paint to write messages such as “ACAB” and “fuck 12.”
Monday, June 8
About 200 people organized in front of Springfield City Hall, as Springfield city councilors decided to fund body cameras for police officers.
“I think it’s amazing. And it just goes to show that we are being heard,” Clea Ibrahim, a Black Unity organizer, said at a protest the next day.
Tuesday, June 9
Black Unity, an antiracist group, gathered in front of the Valley River Center to protest in honor of Ahmaud Arbery and Sandra Bland. Two men shot Arbery in February while jogging and Bland was found hanged in her cell three days after a traffic stop.
They marched down Delta Highway to I-105 and on to Washington Jefferson Park. After speeches and a brief confrontation between protesters and the driver of a tractor-trailer, the group marched back along the highway to the Valley River Center.
Wednesday, June 10
A silent march took place at the Lane County Jail, led by the BLC. Members of the crowd gave short speeches and a lesson on Black history in Eugene. The group marched to Alton Baker Park and back. Other than during speeches, the crowd was silent the entire time.
Thursday, June 11
The Black Unity protest took place in honor of Trayvon Martin and Tamir Rice. A neighborhood watch coordinator in a Florida gated community shot Martin when he was walking back from a convenience store alone. Cleveland police shot Rice when officers mistook his airsoft gun — with a neon orange tip — for a real gun.
The protest started at Monroe Park, where free food was served and speakers gave speeches. The crowd put their hoods on when listening about Trayvon Martin.
Friday, June 12
Eugene educators gathered at the federal courthouse in solidarity with BIPOC students. The group, with over 100 attendees, marched from the courthouse to the Eugene 4J School District office.
Saturday, June 13
Members of the BLC gathered at Deady Hall and held a teach-in, educating the crowd of nearly 200 on Oregon’s racist history. Following the completion of the speeches, a separate group called for others to join in protesting the controversial Pioneer and Pioneer Mother statues on campus.
The group then used ropes, sledgehammers and pickaxes to tear down the statues. The protesters dragged the Pioneer statue up the front steps of Johnson Hall, blocking the entrance.
Related: “Breaking: Protesters tear down pioneer statues after Deady Hall protest”
According to a statement from UO spokesperson Saul Hubbard, the university will keep the statues in safe storage as a campus committee formed by Schill determines whether to remove the Pioneer statues, as well as other statues and monuments, from campus.
“These are obviously turbulent times,” Hubbard said in the statement. “While we support peaceful protest and vigorous expression of ideas, we do not condone acts of vandalism. Our country, state and campus are coming to terms with historic and pervasive racism that we must address, but it is unfortunate that someone chose to deface and tear down these statues.”
Sunday, June 14
Members of the BIPOC Liberation Collective and Black Unity hosted a webinar to discuss the missions and tactics of their organizations. Three organizers from each group spent a few minutes telling how they got involved in anti-racist activism. The panelists then responded to questions about contentious issues within activism, such as what tactics are appropriate and whether or not phrases like “all cops are bastards” help or hinder the movement.
Duncan Baumgarten, James Croxton, Zack Demars, Jack Forrest, C. Francis O’Leary, Gina Scalpone, Sally Segar and Michael Tobin contributed to the reporting in this article.
