News on the Portland Or. stabbings + comments

Suspect in Portland double murder posted white supremacist material online
Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, reportedly slit the throats of two passengers who intervened to stop him hurling anti-Muslim slurs at two young women

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/may/27/portland-double-murder-white-supremacist-muslim-hate-speech

Police in Portland, Oregon, have charged a white supremacist with a double murder and hate crimes, after he allegedly cut the throats of two passengers and stabbed another on a commuter train late on Friday afternoon.

According to police, while riding the MAX train in suburban north-east Portland, Jeremy Joseph Christian, 35, began “yelling various remarks that would best be characterized as hate speech toward a variety of ethnicities and religions.”

When fellow passengers attempted to intervene, Christian stabbed three of them. One man, 53-year-old Ricky John Best of Happy Valley, Oregon, died at the scene. Another, 23-year-old Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche of south-east Portland, was pronounced dead at a local hospital. A third, 21 year old Micah Fletcher, was treated for injuries that police said “are not expected to be life-threatening”.

The targets of Christian’s reported abuse included two young women who left the scene. Police believe they may have been Muslim, and that one may have been wearing a hijab. Police have appealed for these women to come forward.

After the attack, Christian reportedly fled on foot from the Hollywood transit station to a nearby medical center, but was soon apprehended by police. An amateur video published by the Oregonian appeared to show Christian taunting police before his arrest.

Early on Saturday morning, Christian was booked into Multnomah County jail and charged with two counts each of aggravated murder and intimidation in the second degree, a hate crime offence. He was also charged with attempted murder and felon in possession of a restricted weapon. He was scheduled to be arraigned on Monday in Multnomah County court.

Christian had been a prominent and vocal participant in recent “alt-right” rallies in Portland. At a “free speech rally” in Montavilla City Park on 29 April he was captured on video wrapped in an American flag, giving Nazi salutes. Earlier that day, police reportedly confiscated a baseball bat from him. Local reporters captured him yelling racial slurs and threatening to shoot “anyone who tries to disarm me”.

Cat Davila, who was among counter-protesters at the free speech rally, said Christian “showed up part way through the event and came striding straight toward the counter-demonstrator crowd very purposefully waving a baseball bat by his side and staring us down.”

As he drew closer, Davila said, police “blocked him and took his bat and from then on he just yelled a lot.”

Christian’s Facebook page revealed obsessive concern with various far right themes. In recent weeks he posted memes and other material attacking “anti-fascist” protesters who have clashed with various “alt-right” rallies around the country. In the lead-up to the April free speech rally, he posted: “Looking for a couple guys or gals down to unmask anyone wear[ing] a mask at the upcoming Free Speech March”, referring to the antifascist practice of disguising protesters’ identities.

Christian also posted openly antisemitic and neo-Nazi material. On 9 May, he claimed to have challenged Nuremberg prosecutor Ben Ferencz to a debate, in which “I will defend the Nazis”. The same day, he posted “Hail Vinland!!! Hail Victory!!!”, combining a familiar catchphrase that was used at a post-election rally by the activist Richard Spencer with the far-right concept of “Vinland”.

Portland-based anti-fascist researcher Shane Burley, author of the forthcoming book Fascism Today, told the Guardian that “Vinland” refers to the area of eastern Canada that Leif Erikson supposedly settled from Iceland. On the far right, he said, it is used as a way of asserting that white nationalists “are Vikings in a new land continuing the ancient battle for the preservation of their people.”

Christian wrote several recent posts opposing male circumcision, writing “I want a job in Norway cutting off the heads of people that circumcize babies” and posting articles about recent attempts in Norway to ban on the practice. Circumcision, Burley said, “is a common men’s rights activist talking point to signify a culture-wide persecution of men.”

Christian also posted material from media outlets depicting his participation in the April free speech rally, referring to his use of an American flag as a cape as his “Lizard King Regalia”.

Christian’s engagement with far right politics may be relatively new. A person who knew him in Portland’s heavy metal scene, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said that when he first encountered him eight years ago he was apolitical.

“Jeremy has always been an extremely damaged person since I’ve known him,” the person said. “He practically grew up in prison and his childhood was horrific but I’ve always known him to have a kind heart.”

Christian had been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, the person said, and “has an extremely obsessive personality. He gets fixed on a thing or an idea and flies off the edge of the world with it.”

According to records, Christian has a history of violence. In 2002, wearing a ski mask, he handcuffed a North Portland shopkeeper to the counter while stealing cash and cigarettes. Following the robbery, Christian was shot in the face by a Portland police officer.

Searches indicated 2002 convictions for kidnapping in the second degree, carrying and using a dangerous weapon, and robbery in the first degree. Records also indicated that Christian had been charged, but not convicted, with offenses ranging from felon in possession of a firearm to supplying contraband.

The attack on Friday came just a week before another “free speech rally” in downtown Portland, planned for 4 June. The event is being organized by Patriot Prayer, the group that organized the rally in April. The rally will feature a number of national “alt-right” celebrities. Anti-fascists are organizing a counter-protest.

One of the main antifascist groups organizing that counterprotest, Rose City Antifa, issued a rare press release late on Saturday. They said that Christian was “merely one of many white supremacists who attended a number of recent rallies organized by Vancouver, Washington video blogger Joey Gibson”. Gibson leads the Patriot Prayer group who has organised recent rallies, including the one that Christian attended.

Rose City Antifa recommitted to opposing the “free speech” rally next Saturday, saying that “on June 4th, the Portland community will say “No!” to fascism, as a warning to white supremacists that their organizing will not be tolerated in our communities”.

Broader reaction in Portland has ranged from shock to defiance. In a media conference on Saturday afternoon, city mayor Ted Wheeler called the attack “a horrific act of racist violence”. Wheeler also pointed to the current political climate as a factor in the crime, adding that “violent words lead to violent acts”.

Others on hand to speak included Oregon governor, Kate Brown, and Portland district attorney Rod Underhill. Underhill urged Portlanders to “stand up, not stand down” to racism, and reminded the gathered media that aggravated murder – one of the crimes that Christian has been charged with – is “a capital offense in Oregon”.

FBI special agent in charge, Loren Cannon, said that it was “too early to say” whether the attacks constituted domestic terrorism under federal law.

Another speaker, Wadji Said from the Interfaith Council of Portland, compared the attacks to the 1988 murder of Ethiopian immigrant Mulugeta Seraw by racist skinheads in Portland.

Later, at a candlelight vigil held on the lawn outside the Hollywood Transit Center where the attack happened, a number of impromptu speakers praised the heroism of the men who had died in defence of fellow citizens.

At least 2000 attendees joined the speakers, many carrying flowers to add to the impromptu memorial on the corner outside the Transit Center.

Two Muslim Portlanders attending the vigil, Keenan Davis and Amer Salam, said that the attacks had cast a pall over the beginning of Ramadan.

“The night before Ramadan, after prayer, usually it’s a hang out, especially for the dudes. You might talk about the Cavaliers and Celtics, or how hungry you are gonna be for the upcoming days. Just chilling.

“Last night there was extra security around prayers, and there’s fear. How many people would like to be told they can’t hang out after church on Sunday?”
He was saddened but not surprised by the attack. In recent months, he said, those with anti-Islamic prejudices had become “more confident” in their desire to “impose themselves on the rest of us”.

After ‘Heroic Intervention,’ Funds Being Raised for Portland Victims
Taliesin Myrddin and Ricky Best died after confrontation with alleged racist; Micah Fletcher survived despite extensive injuries to his neck

Lauren McCauley

https://www.commondreams.org/news/2017/05/28/after-heroic-intervention-funds-being-raised-portland-victims

In a cruel twist to a devastating story about bravery in the face of hate, friends of Micah Fletcher, the sole survivor of the Oregon transit stabbing on Friday, are now trying to raise funds to pay for his life-saving medical treatment.

“Our friend was stabbed and critically injured while being a good Samaritan and heroically intervening during the racist terrorist incident that left two men dead,” reads the Go Fund Me page. “He bravely did what anyone should do when confronted with terrorism and stepped in to stop the harassment of Muslim women by a known White Supremacist.”

Fletcher was one of three people who approached suspect Jeremy Christian on the Portland MAX train on Friday after Christian was seen “yelling anti-Muslim hate speech at the two women, one of whom was wearing a hijab,” KATU reports.

The other two, 23-year-old Taliesin Taliesin Myrddin and 53-year-old Ricky Best, died in the attack. There is a separate fundraiser for the families of the victims.

The Oregonian reports:

The 21-year-old was taking the train to his job at a pizza shop from classes at Portland State University. The suspect hit Fletcher once on the left side with the knife. It punctured his neck and was millimeters away from his jugular, Helm said doctors told her and the family.

He required surgery, which lasted about two hours, she said. Surgeons who operated on him had to remove bone fragments from his throat, she said.

Fletcher is a poet who frequently writes about social justice issues and anti-Muslim prejudice. “Last Memorial Day weekend, Fletcher and other poets part of Spit/WRITE, a youth poetry group, were reading poems about social justice on a MAX train,” The Oregonian noted. “The purpose was to give them the space to call attention to social justice issues, one of his poetry mentors, Renee Mitchell, said.”

According to reporting, Christian, who has been arrested and charged on multiple counts, “had been a prominent and vocal participant in recent ‘alt-right’ rallies in Portland,” and had a history of expressing racist ideas on social media.

Early Saturday he was booked in the Multnomah County jail and has been charged with two counts each of aggravated murder and intimidation in the second degree, a hate crime offense. He was additionally charged with attempted murder and felon in possession of a restricted weapon. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Monday.

The attack captured international attention, as it comes amid a documented increase in hate crimes and speech against Muslims, immigrants, and other minorities, which has coincided with the election of President Donald Trump and the enactment of several policies also targeting those groups.

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler called the stabbing victims “heroes,” and said their actions “should serve as an example and inspiration to us all.”

Rep. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.), who also extolled their heroism, issued a statement saying: “When White supremacy and neo-Naxism are allowed to flourish, often with the tacit approval of a White House and Republican party more interested in targeting immigrants and people of color than domestic terrorists, this is the inevitable result.”

“We have to address the extremism in our midst. We owe it to our friends and neighbors and families. We owe it to Taliesin and Ricky,” Ellison said. Let us strive to be as brave and as compassionate as them.”

Later, drawing attention to the fundraiser for Fletcher, Ellison wrote online:

Our healthcare system is so cruel, one of the heroes of the Portland stabbing has to crowdfund his lifesaving medical care. https://t.co/sZSMHgsJGH

— Rep. Keith Ellison (@keithellison) May 28, 2017

“You call it terrorism. I call it patriotism”: Jeremy Christian’s Arraignment Was Raucous

http://www.portlandmercury.com/blogtown/2017/05/30/19047259/you-call-it-terrorism-i-call-it-patriotism-jeremy-christians-arraignment-was-raucous

Jeremy Christian is still shouting.

At a brief and chaotic arraignment on nine felony and misdemeanor charges this afternoon, the suspect in the vicious stabbing deaths of two men and serious injury of a third last week entered the court room shouting.

“Free speech or die, Portland,” yelled Christian, 35, staring down an audience that included Micah Fletcher, whom police say Christian stabbed in the neck on a MAX Green Line train on Friday. “You’ve got no safe place. This is America. Get out if you don’t like free speech.”

A short time later he yelled: “Death to the enemies of America. Death to antifa [anti-fascists]. You call it terrorism. I call it patriotism. Die.”

Around the time Christian appeared in court, shouts erupted from the hallway outside. Some of that was people reacting to the man’s appearance, but other anger was aimed at a man with multicolored hair and red laces in his boots who’d shown up to support the defendant. He said he was a friend of Christian’s, but wouldn’t answer the Mercury’s questions about how he knew him. He was shouted out of the justice center under the protection of the sheriff’s office.

Later in the hallway, about a dozen people watched a live stream of arraignment. As they spotted Christian through the small circular windows on the two double doors, they yelled “YOU’RE A MURDER!” at the unrepentant killer. Sheriff’s deputies came out and forced them back.

Christian’s next court date is scheduled for June 7.

A friend of Jeremy Christian showed up to his arraignment. People chased him out. pic.twitter.com/d3uMhUlU0S

— doug brown (@dougbrown8) May 30, 2017

Portland Stabbing Victim Calls Out City’s ‘White Savior Complex’
Survivor Micah Fletcher urges supporters to focus on the girls who were targeted, not him.

By Rebecca Shapiro

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/portland-stabbing-victim-calls-out-citys-white-savior-complex_us_592f863be4b0540ffc8468db

Portland stabbing survivor Micah Fletcher is calling for supporters to focus their attention on the girls racially and religiously attacked during Friday’s train attack.

He was one of three people stabbed after confronting a man on a MAX train for verbally attacking Destinee Mangum, 16, and her 17-year-old-friend, who is Muslim and was wearing a hijab. While Fletcher survived, Ricky John Best and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche died from their wounds. Police arrested Jeremy Christian, who has ties to white supremacist groups, soon afterward.

Fletcher thanked supporters for an outpouring of kindness and money in a moving video he posted to Facebook Wednesday, but then he said there’s a problem that needs addressing.

“We need to remember that this is about those little girls. I want you to imagine that for a second being a little girl on that MAX,” Fletcher said. “This man is screaming at you. His face is a pile of knives. His body is a gun. Everything about him is cocked, loaded and ready to kill you,” he continued. “There is a history here with this. You can feel that this has happened before, and the only thing that was different was the names and faces. And then a stranger, two strangers, three strangers come to your aid. They try to help you. And that pile of knives just throws itself at them. Kills them.”

Even after experiencing such trauma, Fletcher has a way with words. The 21-year-old is a poet and student at Portland State University. Oregon Live reported that Fletcher won a 2013 poetry competition for two pieces of work: one that dealt with the blame rape victims face and another focused on the prejudice leveled at Muslims in America after the attacks on September 11, 2001. His work focuses on social injustices, and he wants his poems to inspire change.

“We in Portland have this weird tendency to continue patterns that we’ve done forever and one of them is same old just to put it bluntly: white savior complex,” Fletcher said in the video. “I think it’s immensely immensely morally wrong and irresponsible how much money we have gotten as opposed to how much support, money, love, kindness that has been given to that little girl.”

The poet linked to a fundraiser organized in honor of the two teenagers who were targeted during the train attack. At the time of this posting, about 1800 individuals donated more than $65,000 of its $150,000 goal. The group is raising money to provide the teenagers with safe transportation options and mental health services.

Multiple fundraisers were set up in the days following the attack and, in total, they surpassed $1 million in money raised. A GoFundMe page devoted to supporting Fletcher’s medical bills has received more than $255,000. A campaign organized by local nonprofit, Muslim Educational Trust, has raised more than $530,000 to support Fletcher and the families of the two men who died standing up to the attacker.

“Although this campaign is organized by Muslims, we welcome people of all faiths to contribute,” the campaign’s page says. The group reached its $60,000 goal within 5 hours. Its new goal is set at $550,000.

Portland restaurateur Nick Zukin started a GoFundMe page as well, which has raised $540,000 of its of $600,000 goal.

“They are heroes, yet their families are not only going to be faced with the pain of losing people they love, but with financial hardships from their passings,” Zukin wrote on the page. “I’ve started this GoFundMe to help them with costs as a result of their deaths and injuries.”

Fletcher asked followers to like and share his video, which has been viewed more than 300,000 times in the 14 hours since he posted it to Facebook.