A May Day protest turned violent in Portland, Ore. on Monday as demonstrators threw rocks, projectiles and even full cans of Pepsi at officers.
Twenty-five people, ranging in age from 14 to 44, were arrested for crimes including riot, arson, theft and assault, the Portland Police Bureau said in a press release on Monday evening.
“The situation devolved into a full-scale riot with random acts of vandalism to Downtown businesses, cars, and public and private property,” the release said.
The protesters tossing Pepsi were likely referencing the brand’s recent ad that was mocked online and decried as “tone-deaf.” In the video, model and "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" mega-star Kendall Jenner de-escalates a tense protest by handing a police officer a can of Pepsi.
Critics accused the brand of ripping off the Black Lives Matter movement to sell soda, and Pepsi pulled the ad after only a day.
May Day protests, held annually on the first of May, recognize International Workers’ Day. Since 1884, workers around the world have used the day to demand better conditions, according to the Canadian Union of Public Employees. Several Chicago workers were shot dead by police that year during riots. Employers had refused to recognize a law declaring that a full workday would be eight hours as of May 1, 1886.
In Montreal, protesters marched for the 10th consecutive year. Their slogan for 2017 was: "They are rich because we are poor and we are right to revolt.''
With files from the Canadian Press
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