Officials with the city of Boston violated the First Amendment rights of reporters at the Aug. 19 'Free Speech' rally, the Massachusetts ACLU and media organizations said in a letter to Mayor Marty Walsh and his police chief.

In the Oct. 24 letter, the groups said "journalists were improperly excluded from the buffer zone around the Boston Common's Parkman Bandstand during the rally on August 19, 2017."

The groups added that they "seek assurances that this exclusion will not be repeated at the rally that has reportedly been scheduled for November 18."

The groups that signed the letter include the New England First Amendment Coalition (NEFAC), the Massachusetts Newspaper Publishers Association (MNPA), the New England Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ-NE), the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the ACLU of Massachusetts (ACLUM).

The August 19 rally happened less than a week after protesters clashed in Charlottesville, Virginia.

"Journalists could not hear what participants said, record or photograph the proceedings near the Bandstand, or interview participants, including about the reasons for their involvement and views," the civil liberties and media groups wrote in their letter.

"We therefore request that significant changes be made to comply with the First Amendment, while ensuring public safety, with regard to the 'Rally for the Republic' planned for November 18," they added.

Boston Police Commissioner William Evans recently said on WGBH's "Boston Public Radio" that law enforcement officials didn't know that the "Free Speech" rally organizers did not have amplification devices for their rally.