Los Angeles teachers set out to provide a "show of force" on Saturday, with tens of thousands rallying in the city's downtown area to illustrate the power in their numbers, ahead of a potential strike next month.

The city's teachers' union, United Teachers Los Angeles (UTLA), has been embroiled in contract negotiations with the school district for 18 months, with union leaders rejecting the district's latest offer of a three percent retroactive raise starting from July 2017. The teachers are demanding a 6.5 percent raise as well as smaller class sizes and more school support staff.

The community is united behind a @UTLANow strike if that's what it takes to reinvest in public education instead of cut it to the bone. It’s about the students! #WeAreLA #March4Ed #UTLAStrong #StrikeReady #WeAreLA pic.twitter.com/v8ns6Vu6nu — United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) December 15, 2018

This what the LOVE of PUBLIC SCHOOLS looks like: over 50,000 marched today for public education. Our message to Austin Beutner: Unless you use the $1.8 billion reserve to invest in our students, expect to see us on strike in January. #StrikeReady #March4Ed #WeAreLA pic.twitter.com/N6fJNCp3Mi — United Teachers Los Angeles (@UTLAnow) December 16, 2018

Carrying signs reading, "Stand with L.A. Teachers" and "Education is a human right," educators, parents, and students rallied at City Hall before joining the union's March for Public Education.

HAPPENING NOW: @LAPDHQ estimates 10,000-15,000 people are here in DTLA marching in support of teachers rallying for smaller classroom sizes, salary increases and more counselors and nurses in school. #March4Ed #WeAreLa #LAUSD @FOXLA pic.twitter.com/r9WTUlyyxr — Leah Uko (@LeahUko) December 15, 2018

Students can’t wait for lower class sizes and more nurses, counselors, psychologists, and librarians. @LASchools has a record-breaking $1.8 billion in reserves but talks about raising class size to 50 students? That’s why we #March4Ed. #WeAreLA pic.twitter.com/Emej1rnPUR — California Teachers Association (@WeAreCTA) December 15, 2018

The union argues that the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is flush with cash that could be used to provide teachers with raises in one of the country's most expensive cities, as well as hiring more support staff, nurses, and teachers to cut down on class size—which is at 45 students per class in some schools.

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"Amidst the wealth of Los Angeles, we should not have class sizes of 45 students," UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl told the crowd.

"What we have in L.A. is a community uprising. If we strike, it is all of our strike. When we win, it is all of our victory." —UTLA President Alex Caputo-Pearl

"It's wrong that the District is hoarding $2 billion dollars when they say there's no money for the schools. It's wrong when community schools are starving and charter schools are expanding," American Federation of Teachers (AFT) President Randi Weingarten said.

In some schools, demonstrators argued, the district's refusal to staff the district properly has led to serious safety risks.

"There is not a nurse in every school every day. Some schools get a nurse one day a week if they're lucky," school nurse Stephanie Yellin-Mednick told the Associated Press. "There is simply not enough of us to take care of the kids."

LAUSD is the country's second-largest school district, serving more than 600,000 students. Teachers are threatening to strike next month if the school district doesn't meet their demands, providing more support for the city's school children.

The Los Angeles police estimated that between 10,000 and 15,000 marched on Saturday, while organizers counted about 50,000 participants. The union applauded school communities for turning out to support the city's teachers.

"What we have in L.A. is a community uprising," Caputo-Pearl said. "If we strike, it is all of our strike. When we win, it is all of our victory."