Nation

Portland Mayor pepper sprayed a man who allegedly accosted him for dining outdoors

Published

10 months ago

January 25, 2021

Staff Writer

Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler allegedly pepper-sprayed an individual who accosted him Sunday evening as he was leaving a restaurant where he was dining out. The individual allegedly was angry about Wheeler’s decision to eat out during the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a police report, which was made public Monday night.

According to the police report, Wheeler was leaving McMenamins Hillsdale Brewery & Public House in Southwest Portland with the former Mayor of Portland Sam Adams when he was followed to his vehicle.

Report: ‘At Least 160,000 Illegal Immigrants’ Have Been Released Into U.S. Since March

According to the report the pair had been eating in an outdoor tent and in Multnomah County outdoor dining is authorized, as long as restaurants operate below capacity.

The man allegedly videotaped the interaction. According to the report, the mayor said he had warned the man that he was carrying pepper spray, telling him to “back off’ before spraying in the eyes.

According to news reports the incident is being investigated.

You can follow Sara A Carter on Twitter @SaraCarterDC

Nation

Boston Celtics Player Legally Changing Name to ‘Enes Kanter Freedom’ to Celebrate U.S. Citizenship

Published

2 days ago

November 29, 2021

Staff Writer

Photo by Omar Rawlings/Getty Images

Boston Celtics center Enes Kanter is celebrating becoming a U.S. citizen in an incredible way. The 29-year-old athlete from Turkey is having his citizenship oath ceremony Monday, and will legally change his name to Enes Kanter Freedom.

Kanter is an outspoken human rights advocate who had his Turkish passport revoked in 2017 after he criticized Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan. Mediaite reports “he has also criticized NBA stars Michael Jordan and LeBron James for not doing enough to help the Black community and not speaking out against exploitative labor practices in China respectively.”

Celtics head coach Ime Udoka told the Boston Globe the team is “all for” the player’s name change. Kanter’s manager says the player will complete his legal name change to have Kanter become his middle name and Freedom be his new last name at Monday’s ceremony.

“We congratulated him as a group for getting his American citizenship last week,” Udoka said. “That’s who Enes is, we’re proud of him. Enes is who he is. He’s passionate about his stances and the name change; you look at [Ron] Artest [who changed his name to Metta Sandiford-Artest in the middle of the COVID-19 outbreak] and guys that have done it in the past. It’s something he wants to express and we’re all for it.”

Kanter has already changed his official Twitter account to Enes Kanter FREEDOM with his new last name in all caps. Freedom made waves when he tweeted the following on November 18: Money over Morals for the ‘King’. Sad & disgusting how these athletes pretend they care about social justice. They really do ‘shut up & dribble’ when Big Boss [inserted Chinese flag] says so. Did you educate yourself about the slave labor that made your shoes or is that not part of your research?”

The tweet included photos of basketball shoes he wore painted with human rights depictions and phrases such as “hey still researching and getting educated?” as well as “I am informed and educated on the situation.”

The statement is with regard to his criticism of LeBron James’ partnership with Nike. “Nike remains one of the NBA’s biggest sponsors as both organizations feed off their partnerships with China” reports Mediaite. Kanter Freedom also made an offer to take Michael Jordan and Nike co-founder Phil Knight to China in order for the men to “visit these slave labor camps and you can see it with your own eyes.”