King Civic Center Park in Berkeley on August 27. The protest was part of a larger nationwide backlash against far-right movements in the aftermath of a deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, earlier that month. The "Say No to Marxism" rally was cancelled due to safety concerns and only a small number of anti-Marxist protestors attended. Scheduled attendees at the far-right rally included Augustus Invictus, Jack Posobiec, and Kyle Chapman (none of whom attended), Johnny Benitez, organizer of an "America First" rally in Laguna Beach, and Irma Hinojosa of Latinos for Trump. The rally followed a largely peaceful protest held the day before in nearby San Francisco, in response to a rally that was organized then later cancelled by Patriot Prayer. The Berkeley protest drew supporters mostly from area labor unions, churches, and liberal activist groups, as well as antifa activists. Five hundred police officers were present. Police banned weapons and projectiles, and set up a barricade of dump trucks to protect the crowd from vehicles. The protest was initially peaceful until about 100 masked black-clad anti-fascists carrying shields and sticks broke through police lines, bypassing security checks. The Berkeley police chief had ordered his officers to abandon the park, arguing that confronting the antifa activists would have led to more violence. The masked protesters targeted the small number of right-wing activists attending the announced rally, in some cases pepper-spraying and chasing them away, or beating them. African American journalist Al Letson of Reveal, who was covering the event, saw five masked protesters beating an unarmed man with sticks. Fearing for the man's life, Letson used his body as a human shield and encouraged the protesters to discontinue their attacks. Joey Gibson of Patriot Prayer, also present at this rally, was escorted out by the police after being attacked, and Hinojosa and others required police escorts to exit safely. Anti-fascists threatened to break the cameras of journalists who recorded them. Afterwards, the demonstrators marched to the nearby Ohlone Park where they dispersed. Thirteen people were arrested on various charges, including assault with a deadly weapon and felony assault. One officer and six other people were injured with two taken to local hospitals for treatment. September Berkeley Mayor Jesse Arreguin asked UC Berkeley in August 2017 to cancel conservatives' speech plans slated for September 24–27 in prevention of violent civil unrest. In September 2017, Cal Chancellor Carol Christ said: "Call