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Portland Police Chief Bob Day supported the department’s new strategies and their approach to “crowd support” policing, even as federal agents were left to manage violent anti-ICE demonstrations without assistance, due to directives from city officials for police to stay out of the situation.
Cammila Wamsley, head of Portland’s ICE office, mentioned last week that the office has been under siege for more than 100 nights of violence, with local police barely visible on the scene, as instructed by the mayor and city leaders.
“It’s discouraging for us to witness assaults happening on the street and feel powerless to intervene unless it directly connects to federal jurisdiction,” Wamsley stated.
She further explained that the evening demonstrations have advanced from just chanting and displaying signs to more aggressive actions, including launching bottle rockets at the ICE facility, throwing rocks through windows, officers being targeted with laser pointers, and vehicles being obstructed by barricades.
A member of the Federal Protective Service stands watch over protestors as a large crowd gathers at the ICE headquarters in south Portland on September 28, 2025, protesting against Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (Photo Credit: John Rudoff/Reuters)
“Like any large city, we face substantial challenges, and we are actively tackling them,” Day articulated. “Nonetheless, I see this as a moment for Portland — not to be characterized by fragmentation, but to demonstrate strength, togetherness, and creativity.”
Anti-ICE protests have continued across the country in recent weeks, including in Portland and near Chicago.
On Saturday, federal agents were rammed and boxed in by 10 cars near Chicago, where anti-ICE crowds have gathered for days and nearly a dozen people have been arrested.
Earlier this summer, President Donald Trump deployed National Guard troops to Los Angeles in response to immigration enforcement protests.
On Saturday, a federal judge in Oregon temporarily blocked the Trump administration from deploying the National Guard in Portland as part of a lawsuit brought by the state and city.
