AP Explains: A look at rallies, recent tension in Portland

The liberal city of Portland, Oregon, is again expected to be a flashpoint because of a right-wing rally planned Saturday. The out-of-town groups will likely be met by anti-fascist protesters, and the police will be out in force. The city has seen violent protests before.

Here is a look at the planned rallies and the recent tension in Portland.

WHO IS COMING?

FILE - In this Aug. 5, 2019, file photo, Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler poses for a photo in Portland, Ore. Portland is again expected to be a flashpoint because of a right-wing rally planned Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019, in the liberal city. The out-of-town groups will likely be met by anti-fascist protesters and the police will be out in force. The city has seen violent protests before. Mayor Wheeler said people who are violent or espouse hate "are not welcome" and a massive police presence will be on hand. (AP PhotoCraig Mitchelldyer, File)

The rally is being organized by a member of the Proud Boys, designated as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. Others expected include members of the American Guard, the Three Percenters and the Daily Stormers.

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the American Guard is a white nationalist group, the Three Percenters an anti-government militia and the Daily Stormers a neo-Nazi group. Local anti-fascist protesters — known as antifa — will also likely be there to oppose the right-wing groups. Antifa members, known for wearing masks and black clothing, have participated in violent clashes before.

Another militia-style organization, the Oath Keepers, said in a statement Thursday that it agrees with the goals of the event but is urging members not to attend because the organizers have not done enough to keep white supremacists and neo-Nazis away.

FILE - This Jan. 27, 2015, file photo, shows the "Portland, Oregon" sign in downtown Portland, Ore. Portland is again expected to be a flashpoint because of a right-wing rally planned Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019, in the liberal city. The out-of-town groups will likely be met by anti-fascist protesters and the police will be out in force. The city has seen violent protests before. (AP PhotoDon Ryan, File)

WHY ARE AUTHORITIES WORRIED?

Authorities have their guard up because previous rallies featuring right-wing groups and antifa have turned violent in Portland.

In 2017, two men were fatally stabbed on a light-rail train when they confronted a man who was shouting racist slurs at two young women, one of whom was wearing a Muslim head covering. Less than 10 days after the slayings, an out-of-state right-wing group called Patriot Prayer organized a pro-President Donald Trump rally in Portland that was met with an angry counterprotest. Police arrested 14 people at the event.

FILE - This March 18, 2016, file photo shows the Willamette River and skyline in the background in Portland, Ore. Portland is again expected to be a flashpoint because of a right-wing rally planned Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019, in the liberal city. The out-of-town groups will likely be met by anti-fascist protesters and the police will be out in force. The city has seen violent protests before. (AP PhotoTerrence Petty, File)

In 2018, a similar right-wing rally erupted in dueling protests. Portland police declared a riot and arrested four people.

At a rally in June, masked antifa members beat up conservative blogger Andy Ngo. Video of the 30-second attack attracted widespread attention and put the focus on Portland even more.

Republican Sens. Ted Cruz of Texas and Bill Cassidy of Louisiana introduced a congressional resolution calling for anti-fascists to be declared domestic terrorists, and Trump echoed that theme in a tweet last month.

Portland's City Hall has been evacuated twice because of bomb threats after the June 29 skirmishes.

WHAT'S THE CITY DOING?

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said people who commit violence or espouse hate are not welcome in the city and massive police presence will be on hand. None of Portland's nearly 1,000 sworn police officers will have the day off, and more than two dozen other agencies, including the Oregon State Police and the FBI, will help local authorities. Some businesses are closing their doors Saturday, and several weekend events have been canceled.

Authorities have also made a show of arresting a half-dozen people in the past week who are alleged to have committed violence at past rallies, including one on May 1 that ended with a brawl outside a Portland bar. Patriot Prayer founder Joey Gibson was among those arrested. A former Proud Boys member and four others who associate with far-right groups also were taken into custody.

WHAT IS PORTLAND'S HISTORY WITH EXTREMISM?

Randy Blazak, a leading expert on the history of hate groups in Oregon, said many of today's anti-fascists trace their activist heritage to a group that fought with neo-Nazis in Portland's streets decades ago, and they feel this is the same struggle in a new era.

White supremacists killed an Ethiopian man in 1988 in Portland. By the 1990s, Portland was being referred to as "Skinhead City" because it was the home base of Volksfront, one of the most active neo-Nazi groups in the U.S. at the time. As recently as 2007, neo-Nazis attempted to gather in Portland for a three-day festival.

WHAT DO PORTLAND RESIDENTS THINK?

The rallies and counterprotests have frustrated many Portland residents, who feel their city has been co-opted by political forces beyond their control.

While Portland is known as a liberal touchstone with a history of protest, many residents don't agree with violence from either the far-right or the far-left and would like things to return to normal.

Mayor Wheeler held a large rally in support of Portland and its residents earlier this week that drew dozens of civic leaders, politicians, educators, civil rights groups and unions.

More than a half-dozen events are planned Saturday — including a juggling contest, a Buddhist meditation and a dance party with people wearing giant banana costumes — to thwart potential violence and defuse any problems that could arise.

TOKYO (AP) — The American envoy to the United Nations called Friday for countries armed with atomic weapons to pursue nuclear disarmament as she visited the atomic bomb museum in Nagasaki, Japan.

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, who became the first U.S. cabinet member to visit Nagasaki, stressed the importance of dialogue and diplomacy amid a growing nuclear threat in the region.

“We must continue to work together to create an environment for nuclear disarmament. We must continue to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons in every corner of the world,” she said after a tour of the atomic bomb museum.

“For those of us who already have those weapons, we must pursue arms control. We can and must work to ensure that Nagasaki is the last place to ever experience the horror of nuclear weapons,” she added, standing in front of colorful hanging origami cranes, a symbol of peace.

The United States dropped the world’s first atomic bomb on Hiroshima on Aug. 6, 1945, destroying the city and killing 140,000 people. A second attack three days later on Nagasaki killed 70,000 more people. Japan surrendered on Aug. 15, ending World War II and its nearly half-century of aggression in Asia.

Nagasaki Gov. Kengo Oishi said in a statement that he believed Thomas-Greenfield's visit and her first-person experience at the museum “will be a strong message in promoting momentum of nuclear disarmament for the international society at a time the world faces a severe environment surrounding atomic weapons.”

Oishi said he conveyed to the ambassador the increasingly important role of Nagasaki and Hiroshima in emphasizing the need of nuclear disarmament.

Thomas-Greenfield's visit to Japan comes on the heels of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's official visit to the United States last week and is aimed at deepening Washington's trilateral ties with Tokyo and Seoul. During her visit to South Korea earlier this week, she held talks with South Korean officials, met with defectors from North Korea and visited the demilitarized zone.

The ambassador said the United States is looking into setting up a new mechanism for monitoring North Korea's nuclear weapons program. Russia and China have thwarted U.S.-led efforts to step up U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its ballistic missile testing since 2022, underscoring a deepening divide between permanent Security Council members over Russia’s war on Ukraine.

She said it would be “optimal” to launch the new system next month, though it is uncertain if that is possible.

The U.N. Security Council established a committee to monitor sanctions, and the mandate for its panel of experts to investigate violations had been renewed for 14 years until last month, when Russia vetoed another renewal.

In its most recent report, the panel of experts said it is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks between 2017 and 2023 valued at approximately $3 billion, with the money reportedly being used to help fund its weapons development.

The United States, Japan and South Korea have been deepening security ties amid growing tension in the region from North Korea and China.

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, shake hands during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, right, speaks to Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, second right, as they wait for a meeting with Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Rahm Emanuel, U.S. Ambassador to Japan, right, walk to meet Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, talk prior to a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)

U.S. Ambassador to United Nations Linda Thomas-Greenfield, left, and Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, prepare to talk during a meeting Friday, April 19, 2024, at prime minister's office in Tokyo. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko, Pool)