Tensions would spill over around 10:30 a.m. as they pushed protesters back across the street using a line of bicycles, and in the early afternoon, when rally attendees started making their way out of Old City.
Here are images from both sides of that divide on Saturday:
Brian Hickey/PhillyVoice One protester brought a sign with an academic-styled insult for a group thought to have members in attendance at the 'We the People' rally on Saturday at Independence Mall. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceIndependence Hall served as a backdrop for the PushBack protest against the 'We the People' rally on Saturday, November 17, 2018. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceHundreds upon hundreds of protesters flocked to Independence Mall on Saturday to stand against a 'We the People' rally that drew a couple dozen attendees. The sides were kept apart by barricades and lines of police officers on bicycles. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoicePhiladelphia police officers worked to keep counter-protesters separate from those attending Saturday's 'We the People' rally, on Independence Mall.
Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceAmongst the protesters with the PushBack campaign was this 'coven of witches.' Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceGritty appeared on numerous signs at the PushBack protest. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceMore Gritty signage during Sunday's counter-protest in Old City. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceThe protesters were loud and plentiful along Independence Mall for Saturday's PushBack protest against the 'We the People' rally. Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceBobby Lawrence, from south-central Pennsylvania, spoke at the 'We the People' rally about what he termed misrepresentations of attendees' words and actions. He also boasted of having a wider social-media reach than reporters who were permitted to enter the rally.
And a couple NSFW ones:
Brian Hickey/PhillyVoiceSome protesters put a lot of time into creative ways to make a political point. Brian Hickey/PhilyVoiceGritty, the Philadelphia Flyers mascot, made his way onto a plethora of signs created by those protesting the 'We the People' rally on Saturday. Michael Bartolore, left, is a New York Rangers fan, but came to town from New York to stand against racism.