Though a contingent of counterprotesters attempted to drown the message out, the loudest voice Saturday at a downtown rally came from thousands calling for the end of Dallas' Confederate memorials and white supremacy.

The crowd of 2,500 reflected America's diversity and came in a range of ages, religions and ethnic backgrounds. The vast majority assembled outside City Hall denounced the nearby Confederate War Memorial and others throughout the city. But a few, including some seeking to save the statues, as well as a small anti-police group, had other agendas.

Though there were some tense moments, no injuries or arrests were reported.

Amid a sea of posters -- "March against Hate," "Thanks Trump, You made me into an activist," "Make America whole again" -- the activists called for Dallas' Confederate memorials to come down.

"Take them down. Take them down," they chanted as a series of speakers addressed the crowd.

Crowd chants "Take them down" at Dallas Rally Against White Supremacy. pic.twitter.com/fK7PTVaKhf — Tommy Noel (@TommyNoel) August 20, 2017

"White supremacy comes with a body count," said Rev. Michael Waters, a senior pastor of Joy Tabernacle AME Church and one of the leaders of Faith Forward Dallas. "The blood of our ancestors cry out ... justice should be delayed no more."

The impassioned Waters electrified the crowd.

"The time is always right to do what's right, and now is the time to do what is right in the city of Dallas. Now is the time to bring these monuments down," he said.

Dallas' rally against white supremacy was one of several across the nation Saturday planned in response to last week's deadly event in Charlottesville, Va., that was sparked after that city made plans to remove a statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee.

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Elaine White, 70, of McKinney and daughter Celeste Walls, 51, felt compelled to join other like-minded people speaking out against hate Saturday.

When she was 16 living in her native Rochester, N.Y, White joined the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and his march on Washington. She recalled the training they received before boarding the buses to the capital. They were told to ignore the people shoving them and calling them names.

White, who is black, never thought then that she would still be marching against the same racism and intolerance all these decades later.

"I never thought we would see it come back again," she said Saturday night.

"But after Charlottesville, I felt the need to be here."

Walls said she was proud to be standing by her mother. "People need to take action," she said.

1 / 21Protesters chant during the March Against White Supremacy at City Hall Plaza in downtown Dallas on Saturday, August 19, 2017.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 2 / 21Kenyan Mark Wagema of Dallas (right) confronts a Trump supporter who chose not to identify himself before the March Against White Supremacy rally at Pioneer Park Cemetery in downtown Dallas.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 3 / 21Protesters chant during the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 4 / 21Protestors arrive during the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 5 / 21Protestors chant near the Confederate War Memorial in Pioneer Park Cemetery before the March Against White Supremacy rally.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 6 / 21Protestors exchange harsh words in City Hall Plaza during the March Against White Supremacy in downtown Dallas on Saturday, August 19, 2017.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 7 / 21Dallas Police move into place during the March Against White Supremacy at Dallas City Hall.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 8 / 21Protesters chant during the March Against White Supremacy at Dallas City Hall.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 9 / 21A protestor watches from a perch on a cement post during the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 10 / 21Texas state troopers guard the Confederate War Memorial before the March Against White Supremacy rally at Pioneer Park Cemetery.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 11 / 21Protestors arrive for the March Against White Supremacy at City Hall.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 12 / 21A protestor watches from a perch on a cement post during the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 13 / 21Zach Bland of Cedar Hill came to the Confederate War Memorial before the March Against White Supremacy rally to protest the Pioneer Park Cemetery civil war monument in downtown Dallas.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 14 / 21Protestors chant in front of the Confederate War Memorial in Pioneer Park.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 15 / 21Clad in U.S. flags, Jason Hone of Oak Cliff arrives to the March Against White Supremacy rally with his dog Gonzo.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 16 / 21Patricia Viveros confronts a rifle-carrying protestor on City Hall Plaza during the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 17 / 21Police on horse back move in and push protestors from Pioneer Park.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 18 / 21Aaron Cartwright of Dallas (left) and Andre Nihilist of Fort Worth clash during a protest at Pioneer Park, across the street form the March Against White Supremacy rally.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 19 / 21Protestors clash in Pioneer Park following the March Against White Supremacy.(Tom Fox / Staff Photographer) 20 / 21A protestor gestures as she and others are made to move across Young Street by the police after the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer) 21 / 21A line of police on horses push protestors back to Young Street after the March Against White Supremacy.(Louis DeLuca / Staff Photographer)

Counterprotesters, who police aimed to keep in a separate area, said they were there in the name of free speech and to preserve history.

Clad in camouflage pants and flanked by supporters of the monuments, Charles Foy, 47, spent the better part of an hour discussing the monuments with animated protesters in the Pioneer Cemetery.

He said he was "kind of perplexed" by the latest national debate over Confederate symbols.

Foy said he wants to have a civil discourse on the monuments, but he fears tearing them down will mean "we'll have to do it to all the monuments including George Washington."

This is Wiggz, 32. Wearing Kekistan flag, Trump hat. "Here to protect free speech. And the monument should stand." pic.twitter.com/KsJwuQ5QiT — Robert Wilonsky (@RobertWilonsky) August 20, 2017

Police had anticipated counterprotesters, calling in officers from suburbs and elsewhere. In addition to the heavy police presence, officials used DART buses, vehicles and other heavy equipment, some filled with dirt, as physical barriers near City Hall.

Watchtowers and sharpshooters were also in place high above the crowd. Throughout the event, a police helicopter flew overhead, shining a spotlight over City Hall Plaza.

State police stood guard around the perimeter of the nearby memorial to prevent vandalism.

Emotions ran high from the onset. Prior to the start of the event, some shouting and verbal confrontations were reported.

At one point during the event, tensions flared as a handful of protesters hidden behind bandannas chanted "Punch a Nazi" and called on others to target officers. But officers in riot gear let them chant themselves out, and the group quickly dispersed.

A small group of people protesting police were threatened with arrest after they refused to leave following the event.

Rev. Neil Cazares-Thomas, who attended the rally along with nearly 100 members of Oak Lawn's Cathedral of Hope, was impressed by the size of the crowd.

"We are here to speak the moral truth," said Cazares-Thomas, pastor of one of the nation's largest predominantly gay and lesbian congregations. "This is a place where we value every single person. And they are free to pursue culture, liberty and happiness for all. And all means all."

Jacques Vroom III also joined the call to remove Dallas' statues.

"I think it is a shame that there is elevated ambiguity about what it means to oppose Nazis, white supremacy or glorifying those who fought for continued slavery," the Dallas man said. "I am here to show that asking to remove statues that intimidate, that were erected as a voice against integration, that are redundant to textbooks in preserving history can be done peacefully."

Taking Confederate statues down isn't erasing history, said John Fullinwider, a medical librarian and part of the "takedown" committee that organized the Dallas rally.

"We don't put up a statue of Adolf Hitler to study World War II," Fullinwider told the crowd.

Statues honor people, he said, and a new generation of young people won't be "bound by the mythology of white supremacy."

Counterprotesters arrived early, and police said they were ready for them.

Armed men wearing fatigues and body armor, some of their faces masked, milled about outside City Hall, well before the rally began.

They said they weren't there for political reasons but simply to keep the peace, although one had a Donald Trump campaign sign duct-taped to his back.

Identifying themselves at the "Texas Elite 3 Percent," they said they wanted "to make sure things don't get out of hand."

Their weapons were only a tool of last resort, they said, and they had no intention of getting physical. One of them identified herself as "Momma Doc" and said she had an IV in her backpack in case anyone needed medical attention.

Militia called "Texas elite three percent" near City Hall. Says they don't take sides but here "to make sure things don't get out of hand." pic.twitter.com/TzcnHwkDyX — Eline de Bruijn (@debruijneline) August 19, 2017

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Earlier Saturday, more than 30,000 people chanting anti-Nazi slogans converged on downtown Boston in a boisterous repudiation of white nationalism, dwarfing a small group of conservatives who cut short their planned "free speech rally" a week after a gathering of hate groups led to bloodshed in Virginia.

Staff writers Eline de Bruijn, Tristan Hallman, Dianne Solis and Robert Wilonsky and The Associated Press contributed to this report.