Rose City Antifa #fundie newsweek.com

A man assaulted by Antifa supporters in a video that went viral following a demonstration against a far-right rally in Portland, Oregon, says he is not a fascist but a Bernie Sanders-supporting progressive and registered Democrat.

On August 4, Portland-based far-right group Patriot Prayer rallied at the city’s Tom McCall Waterfront Park. But it was opposed by a larger number of counter-demonstrators from various left-wing and liberal groups in the city.

Footage shows Paul Welch, 38, wrestling with masked anti-fascists for possession of the American flag he brought to the counter-demo. They demanded he let go of the flag, calling it a “fascist symbol,” reported The Oregonian.

"The right and certainly a lot of smaller groups like Patriot Prayer might rush to things like the flag and try to take it up as, 'This is our symbol exclusively,'" Welch, a protest regular, told The Oregonian. "Part of my thinking was to take it back."

One of the men in the video beats Welch on the legs with a club-like object before striking him on the head with it. Welch is left bleeding on the floor, holding his head, as his assailants calmly walk off.

He feared he would be beaten to death but was taken to hospital by onlookers and his head gash stapled back together by doctors. Welch, who said he voted for socialist Sanders in the 2016 Democratic primary, was also concussed.

[...]

Rose City Antifa, the anti-fascist group in Portland, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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