On the evening of January 17, members of the far-right groups Proud Boys and Patriot Prayer surrounded a small house-turned-office on the busy East Burnside Street in Portland, Oregon.
The building houses a rotating door of nonprofits and community organizations, each renting small office space, anchored by the Portland Industrial Workers of the World (IWW). It also houses the Portland branch of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), whose massively growing membership has made the group a major player in just about every social movement in the city.
The DSA’s high-profile activism in the city has made it a target of both far-right groups. In particular, Haley Adams, an “internet celebrity” allied with the Proud Boys, decided to organize the group to retaliate against the DSA after DSA members denied her entry to their Queer Caucus meeting on January 10 because of her threats and racist remarks against leftists.
Adams is known for her aggressive targeting of leftist groups at protests and for bringing the so-called “#HimToo” movement to Portland, where she alleges that there are a large number of men falsely accused of sexual assault. (The statistics on sexual assault reporting, however, do not support her allegations.)
