Police quickly broke up a couple of fights, and the dueling protests appeared mostly peaceful. But heated words, slurs and profanities were exchanged, as demonstrators on opposite sides held Confederate flags and protest signs.
A march led by Take 'Em Down NOLA, which supports the removal of the Confederate monuments, brought hundreds of people from Congo Square to Lee Circle, where they came face-to-face with groups of monument supporters who had been there since the morning. Police said more than 700 people were involved in the demonstrations.
Those advocating the removal of the statues chanted slogans like "Go home racists," and "Hey hey, ho ho, white supremacy's got to go."
On the other side, a monument supporter shouted over a megaphone: "We built this country. If you don't like it, there are plenty of other non-white countries you can go to!"
