ICE Beat is NOT the Leader of Antifa in Portland
After the national outrage in response to Operation Metro Surge in Minnesota, Trump and other White House officials have publicly discussed scaling down the operation. Tom Homan, White House Border Czar, announced on Wednesday, February 4, that they planned to pull 700 federal immigration agents out of the state. Homan was placed in charge of immigration operations in Minnesota after Customs and Border Patrol commander Greg Bovino was pulled out. Around 2,000 agents will remain in Minnesota to carry out the administration’s immigration agenda. In the announcement, Homan indicated a potential increase in operations in Portland and other cities. “You got agents here from LA and New York and Portland,” Homan said in a press conference, adding that “they have problems there too.” He clarified he wanted agents to return to their home stations to “enforce immigration laws in those areas.” This comes after a former White House official told NBC News on January 28 that “Oregon was next.”
In another indication that the Trump administration may be increasing federal law enforcement’s attention to Portland, independent journalist Ken Klippenstein reported on his substack that the DHS had “open source reporting” identifying the “leader of Antifa in Portland.” According to an internal report obtained by Klippenstein, DHS has information that has “not been confirmed” that Chandler Patey, a Portland resident who lives nearby the Macadam ICE facility and regularly attends protests and demonstrations, is in charge of Antifa in the city. Antifa is a highly decentralized left-wing movement that covers a wide range of ideological and political views. The Trump administration designated “Antifa” as a Domestic Terrorist Organization in September of 2025, although there is no evidence to support the idea that Antifa has any centralized leadership or organization. In October, Fox News’ Laura Ingraham did a segment on Chandler Patey’s apartment, which she called an “Antifa safehouse.” Patey has opened his apartment to protestors at the ICE facility to use the bathroom, rest, and take care of other needs.
As activists worry about increased federal immigration enforcement in Portland and the State of Oregon, two federal judges in Oregon have issued orders limiting their activities. A fourteen day temporary restraining order preventing federal agents from using chemical and projectile emissions on protestors is set to expire on Tuesday, February 17, unless extended. This order was issued by US District Court Judge Michael Simon. Another US District Court Judge in Oregon, Judge Mustafa Kasubhai, issued a preliminary injunction on February 4 surrounding warrantless arrests made by federal immigration agents in the state. Judge Mustafa found “ample evidence” to suggest an arrest made without a warrant or an individual determination of flight risk, as required by federal law. The injunction orders the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to report any warrantless arrests every 30 days or at the request of Immigration Law Lab counsel for the plaintiff. Every report must provide “specific, particularized facts” on the flight risk determination made before an arrest. The order does not address the use of administrative warrants, which are not signed by judges, often used by immigration enforcement to arrest and detain immigrants.
Over a hundred protestors marched to the home of Mayor Keith Wilson on Saturday, February 7 to demand he revoke the land use permit granted to ICE by the city for the Macadam Facility in 2011. Members of the City Council insist that without a review process, any attempt to revoke the permit would be struck down by the courts. In September, the city issued a land use violation to ICE for holding detainees over 12 hours, beginning the process of potentially revoking the permit for the facility. The Council also voted to begin charging fees from detention centers operating in Portland, including the ICE facility. However, activists continue to demand more aggressive action from the City Council and the Mayor.
For Reed’s part, Vice President of Student Life, Karnell McConnell-Black, and Interim Director of Community Safety, Kevin Williams, sent an email to the student body on Monday, February 9 outlining protocols for law enforcement activity on campus. Law enforcement officers are not permitted to enter campus buildings without “invitation or authorization from the college.” According to the email, members of the Reed community should notify Community Safety if they are approached by a law enforcement officer. Community members should also expect to receive a notification via Reed’s emergency notification system if there is a significant increase in law enforcement activity on the campus. While the email outlined protocol for law enforcement in general, McConnell-Black and Williams specifically reference immigration enforcement, noting “some law enforcement agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), may not always follow standard norms or institutional expectations.” The email also contains a link to a toolkit published by the Presidents’ Alliance on Higher Education and Immigration. The toolkit was designed to help prepare higher education institutions for interactions with immigration enforcement.
Looking to get involved? Here are some great resources on Instagram!
@pdxcd (Portland Contra las Deportaciones)
@handsoffportland
@pirc_oregon (Portland Immigrant Rights Coalition)
@sunsrisepdx and @sunrisemovementreed (Portland and Reed Sunrise Movement Chapters)