Raucous Protest In Seattle Surrounds Alt-Right Rally

SEATTLE, WA - A pro-Trump group successfully held a rally in downtown Seattle Sunday afternoon. But in the streets around the group's event, counter-protesters fought lines of police in an attempt to confront the pro-Trump group.

Seattle police deployed pepper spray and arrested three people in the downtown area, but there was no violence at the main pro-Trump rally, and no major injuries. Sunday's events in Seattle took place just one day after an attack in Charlottesville, Va., that injured 19 and claimed the life of a woman attending an anti-Nazi counterprotest.

The events in Seattle Sunday were a reaction to Charlottesville, with many counter-protesters decrying fascism, white supremacy and white nationalism. The alt-right group at the center of Sunday's event, Patriot Prayer, has appeared in Seattle and Portland before. Most recently, Patriot Prayer members clashed with anti-fascist protesters after they participated in an "anti-sharia" rally in June.

At 1 p.m. Sunday, a large group of counter-protesters gathered at Denny Park in the South Lake Union neighborhood, about eight blocks north of where the pro-Trump group was holding a rally at Westlake Park. However, as counter-protesters tried to head south to Westlake, lines of police directed the marchers away from the pro-Trump group.

Ryan Parker was standing on the outskirts of Denny Park and decided just Sunday morning to attend the counter-protest. In the wake of Charlottesville, he said, he wanted to make sure his voice was among those fighting back. He wasn't worried about safety, gesturing to the scores of police in the area, including a BearCat armored police vehicle parked nearby.

"There no surprise, no shock, [racism] is clearly a part of us that's still there," he said. "And I'm disappointed in the president of the United States."

A small group of counter-protesters clashed with police at several locations throughout the afternoon. Shortly after the counter-protesters left Denny Park, a group broke off from the main crowd and ran down an alley toward Virginia Street. They were met at the end of the alley by a line of police who deployed pepper spray on the group.

That confrontation can be seen at the 22-minute mark in this video taken at the event:

A short distance away, protesters clashed with police near 4th Avenue and Lenora. Police formed a line across 4th Avenue, blocking access to Westlake a few blocks south. One man was bloodied after a confrontation with police, and he was carried away in handcuffs by several police officers.

A few minutes later, a large group converged on the intersection of 2nd Avenue and Pine Street, within sight of the pro-Trump rally at Westlake. A crowd of protesters moved toward police lined up blocking Pine Street and began shouting and deploying silly-string. The scuffling escalated to shoving, and police again fired pepper spray on the crowd. When the crowd dispersed, police fired blast balls, and the intersection was briefly filled with smoke.

After that third scuffle, the counter-protesters largely backed away from police and dispersed. Throughout the afternoon, the counter-protesters criticized the police for "protecting" the Patriot Prayer group. The police presence at Sunday's rally was large, with officers on scene from Bellevue, Kent, Renton, Tukwila, and the Port of Seattle.

It was clear that police were determined to keep the two groups separate. But it was also clear that, in the wake of the attack in Charlottesville, anti-Trump protesters were deeply upset that right-wing groups seem to get deference from law enforcement. Police provided security for the Patriot Prayer event - including a police escort of out Westlake after the rally - while counter-protesters were met with pepper-spray.

Over at the Patriot Prayer rally, the park's main stage and the area in front of it were fenced off from the rest of the park. Inside the cordoned area, a few dozen Patriot Prayer members mingled with counter-protesters. As usual, the Patriot Prayer members represented a broad number of conservative institutions, from "proud boys" to men dressed in battle-gear adorned with stickers of the Pepe meme.

Patriot Prayer's founder, Joey Gibson, hosted the event, but had mostly ceded control to left-wing activists who wanted to speak.

The rally ended around 4:30 p.m. with police forming a two lines to provide Patriot Prayer members with cover as they left the area. A few proud boys traded shouts with anti-fascists, but no one physically fought. The Patriot Prayer group left the area under chants of "Go home Nazis."

Although Patriot Prayer is solidly on the right, and its members are Trump supporters, members say that they don't tolerate racism and don't mingle with white nationalists.

Timothy Collins was providing security for Patriot Prayer. A U.S. Marine who lives in Portland, Ore., Collins said that the events in Charlottesville "solidified" his decision to come to Seattle for the event because he wanted to ensure everyone's safety. He said that white nationalism is a "centrist ideology" and not part of his school of right wing thought.

"I have these guys here," Collins said gesturing to the Patriot Prayer group behind him, "and I don't want them hitting [the counter-protesters] over here."

Tony Volmente, of Marysville, said he came to the rally to support freedom of speech. He called the group in Charlottesville domestic terrorists and extremists.

"We need to get together to understand why there's so much hate," he said. "I just want to make America great again."

Nearby, a Seattle woman named Audreyana (she did not give her last name) was holding an anti-Nazi sign. She said it's hard to say whether the Patriot Prayer members were white supremacists like the ones seen in Charlottesville, but she came Sunday because she's concerned about the prominence white nationalists have in politics and government.

"I don't think Nazis should be protected," she said.

Gerald Williams, who is not with Patriot Prayer but spoke during the event, questioned whether anyone who showed up Sunday really knew why they were there. Williams said that most people probably just showed up just to see a fight, which made the overall political effect of the counter-protest look "weak."

"Ninety percent of the people cam her to watch a riot, but now they're all leaving because they got to get up and go to work in the morning," he said as Westlake began to empty around 4:30 p.m. Sunday.

Images via Patch.com/Neal McNamara