The information in this section has been gathered from on the ground experience as well as the Chemical Weapons Research Consortium, a local Portland group focused on understanding the impact of chemical weapons used by law enforcement on humans and the environment.
Law enforcement responses vary widely from department to department. City police departments often respond very differently to situations than suburban or rural police departments, especially depending on the frequency and intensity of events that have happened within their jurisdiction. However, they all pull from the same playbook and utilize similar strategies.
Kettling is a trap technique where law enforcement officers (LEOs) will strategically herd a crowd of protestors down streets into a dead end or to an area where there are other law enforcement officers staged and ready to make mass arrests.
You can avoid kettling by being aware of your surroundings, the streets you are traveling, and how officers are moving. Don’t Get Kettled maps have been made for several common protest locations and show the safest routes that allow multiple options for egress. See the Maps section for Don’t Get Kettled maps for common Portland protest locations.
On rare occasions, PPB has completely surrounded crowds to prevent them from moving or to detain or arrest protestors. In other situations, police have blocked the path of the crowd in only one direction in attempts to prevent them from reaching a specific destination.
Note that if you are kettled by police and are detained, but not arrested, you are not required to show your ID or give other information. However, if you refuse to give this information you may be more likely to be arrested.
Law enforcement often uses various types of impact munitions as a legal means of violence to disperse protestors. These munitions may include powder balls, rubber bullets, rubber buckshot, bean bags, FN303 marking rounds, or plastic batons. The rubber buckshot and FN303 marking rounds are hybrid chemical weapons. The rubber buckshot is sometimes coated in CS. The FN303 marking rounds contain bismuth shards, which can lead to heavy metal toxicity.
These munitions have killed and severely injured protestors, especially when directed at protestors’ heads. Impact munitions can also cause broken bones, cuts, and severe bruising. If you are attending an event where munitions are likely to be used consider wearing or bringing a helmet, motorcycle armor and goggles (not swim goggles), shields, and/or umbrellas.
The use of chemical weapons on human beings in the setting of warfare has been outlawed under many different political bodies. Abraham Lincoln outlawed chemical weapon usage in American warfare in 1863, and the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 classified chemical warfare as a war crime, as did the Geneva Conventions of 1925. For domestic use however, these chemical weapons are still a legal option by many cities to use as a form of riot control and crowd dispersal. In Portland, as of 2021, chemical weapons are a legal form of riot control. None of the following chemical weapons are permitted for use in warfare.
Tear gasses and smokes are used to temporarily cause irritation to the eyes, mouth, throat, lungs, and skin. Federal and local LEOs both deploy tear gas.
Exposure to tear gas can make it difficult for you to see and make you feel like you’re unable to breathe normally, which can cause confusion, panic, and psychological distress in addition to intense physical pain. Covering your eyes with goggles, wearing long sleeves and pants, and using a respirator with acid/vapor rated filters or gas masks are the best strategies to avoid debilitating exposure.
Tear gasses are the chemical compounds CS, OC, and PAVA.
CS has been used in gas canister form, aerosol spray, and as a powder coating on rubber buckshot impact munitions.
OC is used in impact chemical weapon hybrids like powder form on foam bullet impact munitions and powder balls as well as in gas canister and aerosol spray.
PAVA is commonly used in impact chemical weapon hybrids such as powder balls and FN303 marking rounds. While it is available as an aerosol spray as well, it has not been proved to have been used in this form in Portland.
While “Saf Smoke” incendiary devices are labeled safer than tear gasses, they include heavy metals that can lead to heavy metal toxicity. These are not safer to inhale and are still harmful.
HC Smoke Grenades
Federal agents from DHS and BORTAC have deployed HC grenades in 2020 and 2021 in the downtown parks Lownsdale and Chapman Squares and the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in the South Waterfront neighborhood. HC produces a Zinc Chloride (ZnCl2) gas, which can be deadly when inhaled and cause an illness called metal fume fever. The symptoms of metal fume fever include flu-like symptoms, extreme prolonged nausea and loss of appetite, dizziness, coughing, fatigue, and joint pain. More severe symptoms suggest a lethal heavy metal toxicity and one should seek medical help ASAP.
Unfortunately there is little short of a closed breathing apparatus and full body Tyvek for personal protection again HC grenades.
Rinse eyes with plain water or saline while blinking to restore vision.
Wash any exposed skin with soap and water.
Carefully remove contaminated clothing as soon as possible. Avoid pulling clothing over your head, which could further irritate your eyes, nose, and mouth. Shirts may need to be cut off instead.
Contaminated clothing and other items should be double bagged and handled with care until they can be laundered. Do not touch contaminated items with your bare hands. Use gloves, tongs, or other tools during bagging and disposal.