Protesters argue with Donald Trump supporters after a rally at the David Lawrence Convention Center on April 13, 2016 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Pennsylvania will hold its primary election on April 26, 2016.(Photo: Photo by Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)
PITTSBURGH – Protests erupted Wednesday night between Donald Trump supporters and anti-Trump protesters at a Pittsburgh convention center where the Republican front-runner held a campaign rally.
Hundreds of demonstrators awaited Trump backers outside the David L. Lawrence Convention Center, dancing and shouting epithets about the presidential hopeful. At the height of the chaos, police shoved and Trump backers lingered for confrontations.
A drum pounded, signs waved and megaphones blared near an exit for the rally, which drew thousands of attendees. Trump backers and protesters shouted at each other in some areas. In others, the demonstration had an almost jubilant flair, with protesters dancing as they chanted: “Hey hey, ho ho, racist bigots have to go,” or “F*** Donald Trump.”
The timing of the Trump rally could not have been worse for downtown traffic:<span style="color: Red;">*</span>A Pittsburgh Pirates baseball game and Pittsburgh Penguins hockey game were also underway.
Some portions of the protests, including those captured by reporters, remained tense.
A<span style="color: Red;">*</span>woman danced inches from a group of Trump supporters, rhythmically yelling “F*** Donald.” She and others with her waved signs that read “STOP TRUMP. SHUT DOWN WHITE SUPREMACY” and declared that immigrants are not criminals. The Trump supporters who gathered around her yelled, “F*** Hillary,” “F*** Bernie,” and, in response to the “Black lives matter” refrain, “All lives matter!”
Police eventually broke up the group, leaving on the pavement a shredded and trampled sign from Trump’s rally.
The convention turned more violent elsewhere, where protesters and supporters began shoving. At least one person was arrested.
Inside, the Trump rally had been among the least eventful of his campaign. One protester disrupted Trump’s speech, held just under two weeks before the state's Republican primary. Several anti-Trump activists stood silently inside the convention hall exit with their fists raised in the air.
Convention staff and police eventually closed the exit near the protest, shuttling away rally attendees<span style="color: Red;">*</span>and reporters. Officers wearing riot gear walked demonstrators away from the convention center around 40 minutes after Trump's speech ended. The crowds dispersed as people filtered through the streets of downtown Pittsburgh.
Police were on alert before the event after a<span style="color: Red;">*</span>group called "Pittsburgh Open Carry Events in Support of Trump" said members would be armed and patrolling outside Trump's Oakland appearance, according to
the Pittsburgh City Paper. Their objective? To stop any attempts of roadblocks much like the one protesters ended up creating Wednesday, according to one user.
The state's GOP primary election is slated for April 26.
USA TODAY digital editor Jess Estepa contributed to the reporting of this article.
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