Berkeley Braces For More Trump Protests This Weekend
BERKELEY (KPIX 5) – Police in Berkeley are bracing for another round of protests between supporters and opponents of President Donald Trump scheduled for this weekend.
The protest is scheduled this Saturday in Berkeley's Civic Center Park. Last month, another protest at the same park that pitted conservatives against liberals quickly devolved into a bloody brawl.
Nine warrants have been issued in that protest, and Berkeley Police on Wednesday released pictures of three more people suspected of violence.
As a precaution, the regularly scheduled farmers' market has already been cancelled.
In a YouTube video, organizers called Saturday "Patriot Day" and acknowledges there will be a counterprotest.
"We understand that they will use violence against us. However, we will defend ourselves in a lawful manner," the organizer said.
Saturday's protest is yet another response to the chaos that broke out on the UC Berkeley campus in February after ultraconservative provocateur Milo Yiannopoulos visited the university.
At the March protest, there were complaints that Berkeley Police did not do enough to stop the violence. This time, authorities won't say what, if anything, they will do differently.
"We anticipate seeing larger numbers," Sgt. Andrew Frankel told KPIX 5. "We've staffed accordingly and we're preparing for a number of different contingencies."
Organizers did not respond to KPIX 5's request for comment as of Wednesday night.
