Watch: Bernie Supporter Brings US Flag Near Antifa, Gets Cracked Over Head for It
Paul Welch proudly voted for Bernie Sanders, and then again for Hillary Clinton in the general elections. When the proud Oregonian heard that fascists were descending on Portland, he grabbed his American flag and decided to protest.
“I was just protesting outsiders coming here for their tacitly fascist event,” Paul told the Oregonian/OregonLive.
Nobody told Antifa that.
Video shows a struggle for a flag and then a black-clad person hit this dude in the head before he drops. I was watching the blood pour out of his head and into the street. #DefendPDX #AllOutPDX pic.twitter.com/KPRk1D8l00
— PDX Mike Bivins (@itsmikebivins) August 4, 2018
The video, uploaded by the Twitter account itsmikebivins, was taken during the August 4th protests and counter-protests at Tom McCall Waterfront Park.
The video starts in the middle of a scuffle, showing Welch struggling to stop two black-clad protesters from taking his American flag.
Welch says that before the struggle, he had been asked to hand over his ‘fascist symbol.’
This was a wake up call, and Welch ignored it.
They lunged for his flag, and the resulting tug-of-war attracted more and more of them. Finally, one decided to club him over the head, loud enough for the wooden ‘clunk’ to be heard above the crowd.
Welch says his “bones turned to Jell-O,” and he instantly slumped to the ground.
Then that primal fear set in: He was defenseless in a mob, and mobs are dangerous things.
“I remember thinking there was a very good chance that I could be beaten to death,” Paul said. Although a few poked him, most moved on to more lively prey.
A volunteer medical team eventually took him to an urgent care, and this lesson in civics ended with four staples in Paul Welch.
Antifa has been known for their violence, used almost exclusively to silence anyone saying or waving something they don’t agree with.
Whatever their beef with Welch, the 3-inch gash they left on the back of his head caused him to eventually file a police report.
The Portland Police Bureau has confirmed that an investigation has been opened.
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