There was a heavy police presence and counter-protesters on hand Sunday at the scene of the Knoxville Women’s March downtown there were no early signs of the white separatists who vowed to protest the event. Travis Dorman/USA TODAY NETWORK-Tennessee
A protest against today’s Knoxville Women’s March 2.0 kicked off with a crowd of about 20 white separatists marching in to jeers from opponents who outnumbered them by nearly 50 to 1.
A heavy police presence was seen early, long before Women's March demonstrators and counter-protesters began turning out at noon.
Organizer Matthew Heimbach of the Traditionalist Worker Party said his group showed up to protest what he called a pro-abortion feminist agenda. He spent the first few minutes blowing kisses to counter-protesters from across a metal barricade and a line of police officers on a divided Market Street.
“We have a very strong local unit here in Knoxville, and we want to show the majority of people aren’t represented by the radical feminist agenda,” he said.
About 1,000 Women's March demonstrators inside the Krutch Park Extension waved anti-Nazi signs as Heimbach’s group held up “White Pride” banners.
“That’s sad for a master race,” Knoxville lawyer and activist Chris Irwin said to Heimbach.
The protest and counter-protest so far have been fairly calm compared to previous events, including an August rally on 17th Street “in support of” a monument to Confederate soldiers killed in the Battle of Fort Sanders.
Heimbach’s crowd left most of the talking to him, except for occasional chants of “White Power” and “National Socialism.”
Most of the thousand in Krutch Park kept their focus on the Women’s March speakers and their backs to the white nationalists.
“We want our own individual homeland,” said one counter-protester.
“Why don’t you leave, then?” came the reply.
“We’re going to take it!” Heimbach said.
“All 14 of you?” the counter-protester jeered. “Ha!”
A group of about 30 Antifa members also showed up Sunday afternoon, wearing all black with pink bandanas.
They marched toward the Market Square counter-protest entrance and stood in Market Square chanting: "Antifascista. No Nazis, no KKK, no fascist USA." They yelled at police, "I don't see no riot here, why are you in riot gear?"
Meanwhile, police say the Women's March demonstrators number more than 1,000, with another 600 or so lined up to get into the park; the line at 1:30 p.m. continued to stretch half a block east around Clinch to Gay Street.
New start time; March for Life changes venue
The Women's March, slated to begin at 1 p.m., has moved to a start time of 2 p.m.
More: From protest to movement: Women march around the globe
More: Is the Women's March more inclusive this year?
During all of this, the March for Life announced a change in its location.
It is now an event being held inside the Knoxville Convention Center on Henley Street, according to city law director Charles Swanson. It had previously been planned to start from the amphitheater at World's Fair Park at 2 p.m.
Counter protesters chant prior to the Women's March in Knoxville on Jan. 21, 2018.
There was a heavy police presence and counter-protesters on hand Sunday at the scene of the Knoxville Women’s March downtown there were no early signs of the white separatists who vowed to protest the event. Travis Dorman/USA TODAY NETWORK-Tennessee
People gather in preparation of the Women's March in Knoxville on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018
Counter protesters chant at Knoxville Women's March
Police, counterprotesters arrive for Knoxville Women's March
People gather before the 2018 Women's March
The entrance to Krutch Park is on Clinch Avenue between Gay and Market streets. Everyone is getting screened with a metal detector.
Counter-protesters for the Women's March have a separate gated-in section. Screening for that is on Market Street, on the Market Square side.
There is also a Tennessee Highway Patrol presence on Gay Street.
Counter protesters chant prior to the Women's March in Knoxville on Jan. 21, 2018.
What organizers say
Beth Foster of Tennessee Women of Faith, a statewide interdenominational nonprofit, said she’ll be ready to meet any protesters with a spirit of peace and goodwill.
“We’ll be here to put ourselves between them and anyone who feels threatened,” she said.
Women's March organizer Kimberly Peterson said, "We've moved from reactionary to proactive, so last year was very much a reaction to the election, but a year out we've had a lot of successes, even though it's been a really tough year."
Her reaction to the counter-protesters: "They have a right to protest. That's one of the beautiful things about America; the First Amendment, which we vehemently defend. We're really not worried about it."
Knoxville police officers began setting up barricades along the edges of Krutch Park and Market Street this morning.
Those attending the Knoxville Women's March 2.0 and March for Life downtown have good weather, with a high of 61 degrees expected Sunday afternoon.
The Women's March is one of more than 250 women's march events worldwide set for this weekend; many of those took place Saturday.
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Members of the Traditionalist Worker Party had said they planned their protest of the Women's March "to take a stand for life, against the hordes of those who would empty the cradle of our nation, and to march for the lives of our unborn," according to a post on the group's website.
People gather in preparation of the Women's March in Knoxville on Sunday, Jan. 21, 2018
Members also said they plan to demonstrate "in support of" the local March for Life, set for 2 p.m., even though members of the Tennessee Right To Life Committee say they don't endorse such beliefs and don't want the support from this group.
Knoxville Police Department officers are manning security checkpoints at Krutch Park during the Women's March rally. No weapons and bottles are allowed; water is being provided for participants.
Market Street, Union Avenue and parts of Clinch Avenue and Gay Street will be closed during the march.
Story will be updated throughout the day as news develops.
USA TODAY NETWORK - Tennessee writers Travis Dorman and Andrew Capps contributed to this story.