The Redmond City Council meeting came to a halt during public comment March 28 as members of People’s Rights, a right-wing activist group, responded to accusations made during the previous week’s public comment section. About 50 members of the group showed up to the meeting to counter comments made at the previous meeting. At that meeting, Redmond resident Trevor Johnson condemned the group during public comment, calling People’s Rights a small fringe group that promotes misinformation and domestic extremist behavior. Johnson also claimed he’d had a gun waved in his face. He later told the Source that someone flashed a gun and verbally accosted him from their car, which was adorned with Confederate flags and Trump 2024 stickers, but couldn’t confirm it was a PR member.
“While the world is suffering through a very real and challenging time during the COVID-19 pandemic, members of the People’s Rights group spin the false narrative that we should not wear masks or get vaccinated,” Johnson told the Redmond City Council on March 14.
The national PR was formed in April 2020 by Ammon Bundy, an anti-government activist who led standoffs with federal agents at the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in 2016 and at his father’s ranch in 2014. The group is animated by what it views as government overreach during the COVID-19 pandemic. Today the organization claims to have over 60,000 members in 16 states. The local People’s Rights Oregon 5 has since created groups that train in firearms, emergency preparedness, prepping, constitutional studies and exploring the idea of seceding Eastern Oregon from the rest of the state.
PROR5 is one of the more robust local chapters of PR, claiming to have about 4,000 members, about 150 of which consistently engage in the group’s meetings and Slack channels. During inter-party Republican elections in November 2021, People’s Rights members secured most of the party leadership positions in the Deschutes County Republican Party. PROR5 newsletters frequently include calls to action to comment at public meetings, submit testimony about legislation and keeps members aware of open seats in government. On March 27, PROR5’s weekly newsletter asked people to speak at the Redmond City Council in defense of the organization.
“A local left-wing activist has taken up the task to consistently bash PRO5 at the council meetings and I say enough is enough. It is time we stand up for ourselves and our group and put people like this on notice that we won’t sit idle while our character and integrity is falsely assaulted,” the newsletter post stated.
Johnson occasionally speaks at the Redmond City Council, often in support of causes such as the protection of abortion rights, marijuana dispensaries in Redmond and a Redmond Pride Parade — a project he has taken on himself. Johnson will seek a seat on the Redmond City Council, according to a guest opinion by Charles Baer in the Redmond Spokesman. The PROR5 newsletter said Johnson claimed, if elected, PR, “will go down with the ship as will other right wing groups.” Johnson confirmed that if elected he would seek to weaken what he views as hate groups.
“I will fight tooth and nail as a leader to make sure that we tackle any form of hate directed at anybody on a threatening level. And if you’re flying Confederate flags, if you’re using religion as a weapon to hurt other people, including people of color in our LGBT communities, or other ethnic backgrounds, then yes, I will introduce legislation. Whether it gets passed or not is another question,” Johnson said.
Of the 50 or so PR members who showed up to the March 28 meeting, eight spoke during public comment. Public commentors said they were regular and productive members of the community and didn’t support extremism. Several people spoke about their opposition to COVID-era closures, mask use and vaccine mandates.
The first six PR members spoke at the top of the meeting, but Mayor Ed Fitch paused the meeting during Deschutes County Republican Party Chairman and PR member Scott Stuart’s testimony, after Stuart said City Councilor Clifford Evelyn refused to meet with him. The two corresponded via email last year, but Evelyn ultimately decided to decline to meet due to Stuart’s use of a Confederate flag and soldier’s outfit on a float in Redmond’s Fourth of July Parade in 2021.
“I said yes at first, and then I thought about and I said, you know, what could you possibly want to talk to me about? Because he not only flew the Confederate flag, he actually wore the uniform. To me, since that isn’t the holiday, he only did that, in my opinion, to entice and cause division in our City. I emailed him back and said, you know, Scott, after thinking about it, I don’t want to meet with you. I appreciate the offer. But no, thank you,” Evelyn told the Source Weekly.
Fitch ultimately reconvened the meeting and announced that the remaining public comments would occur after the City conducted its regular business. Stuart, who said he’d reclaim his time at the next meeting on April 11, says attempts to moderate public comment is a First Amendment violation.
“You need to understand this, if they choose to stop people from speaking freely and they control their topics, that’s a violation of the First Amendment,” Stuart said. “The citizens have every right to redress their grievances in a peaceful manner.”
The comments at the tail end of the meeting were more mellow. BJ Soper, the founder of the Central Oregon chapter of People’s Rights, who was present at the Malheur occupation, spoke near the end of the meeting, saying the group is a peaceful organization formed to protect constitutional rights. Soper is one of three candidates competing for a position on the Redmond Parks and Recreation board in the May elections.
Oregon law requires cities to make people aware of public meetings, but there’s no direction on public comment and cities are free to make their own policies. Redmond’s City Charter doesn’t regulate public comments, but does give the mayor the authority to preserve order, enforce rules and determine the order of business.
“Someone said People’s Rights were a terrorist organization. I don’t have any problem with them defending themselves and it probably shouldn’t have been said in the first place a couple of weeks ago by someone, but it was said. I appreciate them saying they’re not [terrorists] and that they have every intention of being peaceful and helpful,” Fitch told the Source. “But when it gets into the COVID stuff, it’s not productive. It’s not relevant. We’ve got a lot of work to do. And then when we start going after one of the members of city council, it’s just time out. We’re not going there.”
This article appears in Source Weekly April 6, 2023.
MAKE LOCAL JOURNALISM HAPPEN
Republish our articles for free, online or in print, under a Creative Commons license.
Anyone who flies the confederate flag has no interest in civil dialogue. These people are a menace to the entire region.
If not terrorists, the little PRO5 mob is a bunch of wannabe terrorists. In any event, being loud doesn’t mean you represent the majority. They don’t. And, as the article notes, their First Amendment rights were never violated by the Redmond mayor. They serve a fine whine that is turning to vinegar.
Sorry to burst peoples bubble about the peoples right group, they don’t wave confederate flags, I have been to their meetings, they’re not into spreading misinformation and disinformation, that’s just Liberal nonsense, I’m sick and tired of hearing the term “right wing extremist” BS, they’re not right wing extremist, they’re just local patriotic, God-fearing people, the problem we have is left-wing politicians, city council members, journalist, pushing narrative about how everything needs to be, everything that was once normal, abnormal is the new normal!! The Bend city Council, the Redmond city Council had become left-wing radicals about everything, everybody has the first amendment right to freedom of speech, you don’t shut somebody down because you disagree with them and call them right wing radicals, journalist, are left-wing radicals!! the left is ruining this country, with your inequity inclusive entitlement
Garbage, sexual dysfunction shoved down our throat, drag queens at elementary schools, pornography in elementary school libraries, teachers telling kids if you’re a girl, you can be a boy, there’s 27 different genders, spreading mass confusion on children, etc. etc., people are just sick and tired of this sick garbage that’s being pushed in society by leader ship, and corporations, you name it!! so put that one in your Christmas sock!! 00, that’s right, Christmas is offensive now along with Black Friday, the Easter bunny, statues, even the American flag, if you don’t like America in pages, racist, then leave and you’re gonna find America is not racist, it’s a drummed up narrative by left-wing politicians that want you to live in fear and control you along with climate change narratives the left is pushing, a narrative that does not exist!!! you better wake up people, this is all about government and globalist control over your life, wake up from your indoctrination!!
A Redmond Pride parade? Now Ive heard it all. So tired of this being shoved down our throats for the 1% of the population. I don’t know if they’ve tried to attempt a Pride Parade in Rdmd yet, if not, this ought to be very interesting. Good luck to Johnson LOL!
F. Marcos, your long-winded post makes my point. You attack anyone left of center but get your underwear all twisted up if someone criticizes the right in the same sharp tone you use. Pathetic.
Mickey, maybe it was a little long winded, but I’ve heard enough right wing bashing to last a lifetime, I’m sick of the left, projecting their own behavior on the right, I’m tired of the left, calling us fascist behavior is completely fascist, don’t talk about anybody getting their panties in a twist, your people on the left, the most intolerant, thin, skinned, spineless individuals I’ve ever seen in my life if things don’t go your way, if the narrative doesn’t fit, you shut people down, I have no tolerance for what’s going on with the extreme left in this country,, I don’t understand why we have to appease the .0001% of the population like it’s normal. Once again, there are two genders. Get over it or go find your safe. Space, do you want to see pathetic go look in the mirror.
Jeremy I’ve been to the meetings they do not fly the confederate flag, I don’t know who was flying the confederate flag it was not P.R. Sorry, but I think there was a whole lot of exaggeration going on in this article, especially with the mayor saying people were flashing gun is confederate flags. That is such a crock., PR stands for the white and blue American flag. They do not stand for the confederate flag.
July 4, 2021, “The float was run by Scott Stuart of the People’s Rights organization” (He’s the one in the confederate uniform with the confederate flag).
https://centraloregondaily.com/%e2%96%b6%e…