Michael E. Bivins, a former freelance journalist, was arrested on charges related to multiple hate crimes in Portland. Multnomah County Sheriff’s Office was assisted by Beaverton Police in facilitating the arrest.
Bivins was charged with vandalizing the Muslim Community Center of Portland on May 3rd, which was the first day of Eid El-Fitr, a holy day in the Islamic faith. Bivins was also linked to numerous other hate crimes against Jewish organizations that occurred in Portland in the week leading up to his arrest.
Bivins, who is originally from Eastern Washington’s Tri-Cities, has lived most of his life in Portland. Bivins is a former freelance journalist who often wrote articles exposing right-wing extremism with a somewhat liberal, left-leaning slant.
Some of Bivins’ articles include titles such as:
“Lake Oswego “March 4 Trump” Devolves Into Incoherent Animal Noises”
“A Klansman Surfaces in the Portland Area, Where Neo-Nazi Activity Is Already Bubbling”
Perhaps ironically, Bivins even covered stories related to hate crimes against Muslims.
Most notably, Bivins wrote an article titled, “Friend of MAX Murder Suspect Offers a Clue to Source of His Racial Hatred: Prison”. The article discusses the 2017 arrest of Jeremy Joseph Christian, the Portland man who harassed black and muslim women on a MAX before stabbing multiple other passengers. In his article, published in 2019, Bivins tried to nail down the origin of Christian’s affiliation with white supremacy. Bivins even cautiously pointed out warning signs that Christian’s friend, who Bivins interviewed for the story, might be a white supremacist extremist too.
It’s unclear what changed since 2019.
However, in October 17, 2021, Bivins began posting right-leaning content to a Twitter account under the handle @michaelbivins44.
In some of his recent tweets, Bivins may have given some clues about his growing intentions, even calling for “bias crimes” (hate crimes) to go away in Oregon, saying “we have enough laws as it is”:
The day after vandalizing the mosque, Bivins walked into the local KPTV news station holding an ice pick and a hammer.
“On Wednesday, Bivins came by the FOX 12 station asking to speak to a reporter,” the news station said on its website. “He said he was the one vandalizing places of worship, gave names and locations of places he had been to and vandalized, and said he would not stop committing these crimes before stating he would come back to the station Friday afternoon.”
“After he left the station, FOX 12 contacted authorities, sharing the information he had provided,” the station added.
Bivins was arrested shortly thereafter and has been charged with:
• Criminal Mischief in the First Degree (04/30/2022)
• Criminal Mischief in the Third Degree (05/02/2022)
• Arson in the First Degree [Measure 11] (05/03/2022)
• Criminal Mischief in the First Degree (05/04/2022)
If you were in the area at the time of the attempted arson and believe you have pertinent information, Portland Police Bureau asks that you contact Detective Meredith Hopper at (503)823-3408 or Meredith.hopper@portlandoregon.gov (Case number 22-118101)
Photo Via: @michaelbivins44 (Twitter)
