(KGTV) - Thousands of demonstrators and counter-protesters are expected to gather in Boston Saturday for a "Free Speech Rally."
According to the Associated Press, counter-protesters marched from the city's Roxbury neighborhood toward a conservative rally that began in Boston just before 12 p.m. local time.
Counter-protestor organizers said they will march to Boston Common. Organizers of the "Free Speech Rally" have publicly distanced themselves from the neo-Nazis, white supremacists and others associated with violence in Charlottesville, Va., on Aug. 12.
RELATED: Thousands march in "Solidarity with Charlottesville" rally in Portland
Police are expected to be out in force to keep the two groups apart.
Pictures from the scene show two vastly different sizes of demonstrators though. Police estimated about 15,000 counter-protesters who marched to Boston Common, where the "Free Speech Rally" contained about 100 people, reports said.
Boston's rally is the first politically-charged gathering in a major U.S. city since a car plowed into counter-demonstrators in Charlottesville killing a woman and injuring many others.
RELATED: Mourners gather to remember woman killed at Virginia rally
Other events are planned for other major cities including Atlanta, Dallas, and New Orleans.
Watch Boston's rally live on 10News' Facebook page:
