Several dozen right-leaning protestors gathered in front of Seattle City Hall this weekend for what was billed as a rally against traditional Islamic law, or Sharia.
In this progressive stronghold, they were quickly met by a much larger counter-protest of several hundred people opposing what they saw as forces of intolerance in their city.
The counter-march drew mainstream liberals and Muslims, but also masked and hooded "antifa" activists and self-described anarchists.
It's a familiar scene. Since President Donald Trump's election, his supporters and members of other conservative groups have staged rallies across the West Coast. And they are designed to spark a response.
Joey Gibson, a Trump supporter from Vancouver, Wash., has staged rallies in Seattle; Portland, Ore.; and Berkeley, Calif., through his group Patriot Prayer. He has said his goal is to embolden conservatives living in liberal cities who might wary of expressing their political beliefs.
But there is an element of provocation as well, designed to expose what he calls intolerance for opposing views among liberals.
Though Gibson didn't organize the anti-Sharia rally, he brought a group of supporters, some of them wearing helmets. At one point, they tried to cross a police line to mingle with counter-protestors, spurring officers to rush between the groups.
"I understand the police kind of separated us, they don't want a riot," Gibson said. "I respect that. But all these people build a wall, like they're afraid to just talk to me."
Seattle's "March Against Sharia" was one of more than two dozen rallies planned across the country by a national group called ACT for America. The Southern Poverty Law Center classifies it as an anti-Muslim group, though speakers at the rally said they were only opposed to extreme interpretations of Islam.
The rally drew current and former Muslims denouncing extreme forms of Sharia, as well as Trump supporters and people wearing shirts with Christian messages. There were also flags and shirts with symbols sometimes associated with the white nationalist movement, including Pepe the Frog and the deity Kek.
Some members of the opposing groups did mix at the edge of the protests. At times, the talks were constructive.
Phil Rogoski, a Seattle resident, said he was there to oppose oppressive forms of Sharia. He wore a gun on his hip, because he said he didn't know what to expect at his first protest.
But he said he had a productive conversation with a group of counter-protestors, including an Amazon employee who had fled Iran. They shook hands.
"It was positive," he said. "We both agreed on a lot of things. I think that's the issue, is that the dialogue is missing."
More often, those conversations ended in shouting. When that happens, conservative protestors often film the confrontations on their smartphones.
The videos appear on YouTube and other venues, with commentary about "triggering" liberal protestors, who are referred to as "social justice warriors." Some of the videos are shared in conservative circles and garner tens of thousands of views.
And those confrontations sometimes end in violence. Seattle Police used pepper spray and made three arrests as they broke up fighting near Occidental Park. Similar clashes occurred when Gibson staged a rally in Portland the prior weekend and in Seattle on May Day.
Gibson said he plans to continue venturing into unfriendly territory and making contact with liberal protestors.
"When they see me, they talk to me, they understand I'm not a bad guy," he said. "I just have different beliefs than them."
