For the second time in recent weeks, San Francisco police turned out in force on Saturday to respond to a reported right-wing protest that failed to materialize.
Dozens of officers in riot gear mustered outside the Chinese Consulate at Geary Boulevard and Laguna Street Saturday afternoon in response to online posts indicating that a Proud Boys rally was planned there at 3 p.m.
A group of around 30 or so counter-protesters dressed in black also arrived and faced off with lines of police, but the Proud Boys —a right-wing group known for violence, members of whom have been implicated in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol — did not show up.
SFPD pushed protesters on Laguna Street back toward Geary Boulevard. (Kevin Kelleher/S.F. Examiner)
There were some tense confrontations between the counter protesters, who identified themselves as anti-racist and anti-fascist, and police, who lined up in a mass to block the street and sidewalks and push the group back away from the Consulate. Videos taken at the scene show officers pushing protesters and brandishing batons.
Counter protesters responded by chanting “F- the police” and “You killed Mario Woods,” referencing a local man who was shot to death by officers in the Bayview in 2015, but had largely dispersed by around 4:30 p.m.
The incident was the second time this month that police have responded to a report on social media of a right-wing protest that didn’t occur. On Jan. 11, they lined the streets outside Twitter headquarters on Market Street with barricades and officers on a report of a pro-Trump rally in the aftermath of the social media site’s decision to ban former President Donald Trump.
That event drew far large numbers of police and media, and few protesters.
Counter-protestors clashed with SFPD on Laguna Street in front of the Chinese Consulate on Saturday. (Kevin Kelleher/S.F. Examiner)
