Most Americans do not believe the aggressive tactics which President Donald Trump has employed to quell uprisings in cities across the country are making the situation better, a new poll has found.
According to an ABC News/Ipsos poll released on Friday, just 36 percent of the country approves of the way Trump is responding to protests against racism and police violence. An overwhelming majority, 64 percent, say they disapprove of what he’s done.
Trump’s use of federal law enforcement officers from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Customs and Border Protection (CBP) as well as the U.S. Marshals Service to deal with protesters is having a negative effect, according to a majority of those polled.
Just 30 percent of respondents said the use of federal officers is making the situation better. Fifty-two percent said that their presence in cities is actually making matters worse, while 19 percent say they have no effect one way or the other.
The data from the ABC News/Ipsos poll aligns with what other data have shown when it comes to the national uprising. Earlier this week, a Gallup poll found that 65 percent of Americans support the protests, with 53 percent saying they will be helpful in the long run toward achieving the goal of racial equality.
Portland, Oregon, where agents have snatched protesters from the streets without first identifying themselves and placing them into unmarked vans.
Videos from the nightly demonstrations showcase a violent response to protesters from federal law enforcement officers, including use of tear gas, rubber bullets and flash-bang devices, including many instances where individuals did not appear to be engaged in an illegal or life-threatening act of any kind.
Many have suggested that the federal officers’ presence has escalated the situation on the ground, and that their actions have prompted Portland residents to take action to protect themselves. Mac Smiff, a Black organizer in the city, gave his opinion in a now-viral video.
This clip from @MacSmiff is essential. Protect this man at all costs.
— Joshua Potash (@JoshuaPotash) July 30, 2020
“We came out here dressed in T-shirts and twirling Hula-Hoops and stuff, and they started gassing us, so we came back with respirators, and they started shooting us, so we came back with vests, and they started aiming for the head, so we started wearing helmets, and now they call us terrorists,” Smiff said. “Who’s escalating this? It’s not us.”
Fifty years of research has consistently demonstrated that police departments oftentimes escalate situations at protests and demonstrations to the harm of protesters and themselves. Many states do not even offer de-escalation training options or regulations to local police forces, leaving it to municipalities to determine what standards should be used.
The situation in Portland may be even worse than that. According to The New York Times, the federal officers who were deployed to the city lacked any training in how to work with crowds or mass demonstrations prior to their arrival.
Join us in defending the truth before it’s too late
The future of independent journalism is uncertain, and the consequences of losing it are too grave to ignore. To ensure Truthout remains safe, strong, and free, we need to raise $46,000 in the next 7 days. Every dollar raised goes directly toward the costs of producing news you can trust.
Please give what you can — because by supporting us with a tax-deductible donation, you’re not just preserving a source of news, you’re helping to safeguard what’s left of our democracy.