Portland and State Police violate sanctuary state laws, arrest demonstrators at May Day protest

Portland, OR – On May 1, protesters gathered downtown for a midday May Day rally held by a coalition of 80-plus unions and non-profit type organizations. This included a march downtown with stops at the Mexican Consulate and an office building that houses the offices of a U.S. senator.

Portland Contra de las Deportaciones (PDXCD) and the Freedom Road Socialist Organization (FRSO) attended this rally, although they were not permitted to endorse due to their demand that the city of Portland “Revoke the Permit” for the Portland ICE facility. PDXCD has been vocal in criticizing the city council and mayor for their lack of action on ICE and thus faced pushback in the movement by organizations aligned with the politicians.

Later, on the evening of May 1, there was a second protest organized by FRSO and PDXCD starting at Elizabeth Caruthers Park near the ICE facility in Portland. The protest was to honor the May Day martyrs who died for workers’ rights and demand an end to the deportations. The protest was attended by approximately 300 people at the park with others joining later at the facility. There were speeches by union members and activists alike. An organizer with PDXCD and ILWU Local 5 member stated, “For as long as our country has existed, the working people have fought back, immigrants have fought back!”

The protest marched to ICE and protesters went into the driveway of the ICE facility. This driveway has frequently become a flashpoint in the past year at Portland ICE protests, with federal agents often setting off teargas and other less than lethal munitions when protesters enter the driveway, which is ungated and next to a frequently used sidewalk in a residential neighborhood.

After legal action and the shootings of U.S. citizens by federal agents in January, there has been much less chemical agent used at the facility. The last reported teargas use appears to be at a PDXCD protest in early February.

Later that night, at approximately 8:30 p.m., state police and Portland police stormed the driveway of the ICE facility occupied by chanting protesters. Three targeted arrests happened at that time. Oregon State Police and Portland police pushed protesters out of the driveway with batons and pepper spray. Arrests included Cole Dunahugh and Dr. Catherine Esperanza, who were then transported to Multnomah County jail.

After a call-in campaign and a picketing at the jail, Cole was released very early Saturday morning, May 2. A press conference was held on Saturday afternoon to continue to demand the release of Dr. Catherine Esperanza. The call-in campaign and picketing at the jail continued. After this pressure, Dr. Esperanza was released Saturday night even though callers had repeatedly been told she would not be let out till Monday morning.

The Oregon State Patrol and Portland Police Bureau’s aggressive action to guard the driveway raises questions about adherence to sanctuary laws. Oregon has labeled itself a sanctuary state and Portland is labeled a sanctuary city. The spirit of the sanctuary law is broken when state and city police actively participate in guarding the driveway of the immigration facility with detention cells used to hold immigrants and some U.S. citizens. Many of these detainments have included unnecessary violence, including violence with firearms.

Oregon has been a sanctuary state since 1987. The city of Portland codified their sanctuary status in October of 2025. In its May 2 press release, the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) stated “PPB does not engage in immigration enforcement as outlined in PPB Directive 810.10, but is still responsible for maintaining public safety and enforcing state laws.”

If Oregon residents want to report that sanctuary law is being broken, they can call the Sanctuary Promise Hotline at 1-844-924-7829.

#PortlandOR #OR #ImmigrantRights #Labor #MayDay #PDXCD