Portland knife attack: tension high as 'free speech rally' set for weekend
The racially charged double murder that shocked Portland, Oregon has increased tensions in a city already prey to a marked increase in political street clashes this year.
Taliesin Myrddin Namkai-Meche, 23, and Rick Best, 53, were fatally stabbed on a city train after intervening when a suspected white supremacist began yelling hate speech at two women who police believe to be Muslim. Another man was injured. The accused, 35-year-old Jeremy Christian, is due to appear in court on Monday.
On Sunday, after a candle-lit vigil and strong words from the citys mayor the night before, alt-right organizers refused to back away from a planned free speech rally in downtown Portland on Sunday 4 June. In turn, self-described anti-fascist activists committed to opposing them.
Joey Gibson, a YouTube personality and self-described libertarian behind the Patriot Prayer group, organized a 29 April rally in the city at which Christian was filmed giving fascist salutes and yelling racial slurs, and where counter-protesters claim he approached them armed with a baseball bat.
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