'Free Speech' rally fizzles as thousands of counterprotesters swarm Boston

Doug Stanglin | USA TODAY

Show Caption Hide Caption Thousands rally in Boston during dueling protests Two protest groups rally in Boston. Authorities try to control them. Aaron Dickens has the story.

By their sheer numbers, thousands of anti-racist protesters marching through downtown Boston on Saturday effectively prevented conservative activists from mounting a "Free Speech Rally" in the aftermath of deadly clashes last week in Virginia.

Only a handful of rally-goers, some wearing red "Make America Great Again" Trump caps, appeared to navigate their way through waves of marchers pouring into the Boston Common area, where the "Boston Free Speech" event was planned.

During a post-rally press conference, Boston Police Commissioner William Evans thanked the mostly peaceful protesters and police officers.

"I’m just fortunate that none of the officers got hurt, none of the public got hurt," said Evans, speaking with Boston Mayor Marty Walsh behind him. "Overall it was a good day for our city in that we won’t tolerate hatred and bigotry. People came out to say Boston is united."

Walsh echoed the sentiments on Twitter.

"Today, Boston stood for peace and love, not bigotry and hate. We should work to bring people together, not apart," Walsh tweeted, adding thanks "to all who peacefully stood up for our values."

Today, Boston stood for peace and love, not bigotry and hate. We should work to bring people together, not apart. https://t.co/gZw6ggYYHG — Mayor Marty Walsh (@marty_walsh) August 19, 2017

President Donald Trump went clearly conciliatory towards the counterprotestors on Twitter, a sharp contrast to previous comments following the Virginia protests last weekend.

"I want to applaud the many protestors in Boston who are speaking out against bigotry and hate. Our country will soon come together as one!" Trump wrote.

I want to applaud the many protestors in Boston who are speaking out against bigotry and hate. Our country will soon come together as one! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 19, 2017

Some media reports said only two dozen people actually attended the rally that had sparked the counterprotest in the first place.

One of the planned speakers of the conservative activist rally said the event “fell apart.”

At 1:30 p.m., about 90 minutes after the rally had been set to begin, the Boston Police Department tweeted that the rally was "officially over" and the demonstrators had left the Common.

Boston police appealed on Twitter to demonstrators, saying they were "asking individual to refrain from throwing urine, bottles and other harmful; projectiles at our officers." Police also reported rocks being thrown at officers.

President Trump weighed in with a tweet, saying: "Looks like many anti-police agitators in Boston. Police are looking tough and smart! Thank you."

By noon, Boston police said at least 15,000 counterprotesters were peacefully marching toward the park where the rally area was blocked off by a ring of metal barriers. Thousands more descended on the area over the next hour.

Many carried signs saying "Love your neighbor,” “Resist fascism” and “Hate never made U.S. great.” Others held a banner reading: “SMASH WHITE SUPREMACY.” One column of marchers carried a sign stretching almost the width of a street that read, "Which side are YOU on?"

In the end, the free speech rally itself appeared to fizzle from lack of attendance, either because supporters decided to stay away or were unable to make their way through the massive numbers of counterprotesters.

City officials made no secret of their wish that marchers on all sides would have stayed away, given the level of violence that erupted in Charlottesville, where one woman was killed.

Evans said 500 officers — some in uniform, others undercover — were deployed to keep the two groups apart during the rally.

Boston placed tight restrictions on rallygoers, banning backpacks, sticks or anything that could be turned into a weapon.

Boston Free Speech Coalition, which organized the rally, said on Facebook that it is not affiliated with the Charlottesville rally organizers in any way. “We are not associated with any alt-right or white supremacist groups,” the coalition said. “We are strictly about free speech.”

Counterprotesters from Black Lives Matter and other groups condemning racism and anti-Semitism marched from the city’s Roxbury neighborhood to the Common while a second group rallied on the steps of the Statehouse overlooking the park.

Thousands hit Boston streets for 'free speech' rally Freedom of speech was embodied on the streets of downtown Boston as thousands of protestors and counter-protestors voiced their stance on race in America.

The 383-year-old Boston Common — the nation’s oldest city park — has been the site of numerous rallies and protests for centuries.

Monica Cannon, an organizer of the "Fight White Supremacy" march, tells Reuters that "(i)gnoring a problem has never solved it."