Dueling demonstrations in Berkeley, Calif., by alt-right and antifa groups turned violent on Sunday afternoon, with the front of a U.S. Marine Corps recruiting office getting damaged in the exchange.
Twenty people were arrested, mostly for possessing banned weapons, according to a statement from the Berkeley Police Department.
“The lack of injuries is fortunate given that extremists threw explosives at Berkeley Police and Alameda County Sheriff’s Office mutual aid officers,” police wrote on Sunday.
The department said that the Berkeley fire department treated three members of the public for minor injuries. It also reported “significant damage” to city property committed by an “extremist element.”
One protester clad in black, considered a uniform for anti-fascist movement members commonly known as antifa, was recorded smashing the windows of a nearby Marine Corps recruiting post, Fox News first reported.
No police were around as the black bloc traveled down the street, and a handful used hammers to smash the windows of Shattuck Ave US Marine Corps Recruiting office. pic.twitter.com/YeBwEJvopV
— Ford Fischer (@FordFischer) August 5, 2018
The original “No to Marxism in America 2/Exposing Communism” rally in Berkeley was organized by Amber Gwen Cummings, according to the Los Angeles Times. She arranged a similar event in August 2017. The counterprotest, called “Stop the Hate,” was supported by antifa groups like SAFEBay (Solidarity Against Fascism East Bay), the newspaper added.
Similar gatherings were also reported on Saturday in Portland, Ore., but they resulted in fewer arrests.
The clashes precede anticipated tensions this weekend as demonstrations are planned to coincide with last year’s deadly “Unite the Right” rally in Charlottesville, Va.
[Also read: Black Lives Matter planning ‘love’ march from NYC to DC to commemorate deadly Charlottesville rally anniversary]
