The monument had stood since 1924.
The crowd was small in numbers but steadily grew to more than 100.
Durham protesters march downtown
As they whipped into a frenzy outside the old courthouse, they approached the monument and threw some sort of nylon rope around it, bringing the soldier to the ground.
After desecrating the monument, protesters marched down to block Roxboro Street at Main Street.
The protesters later marched to the site of the new Durham Police headquarters, which is under construction.
Durham Police remained close by but kept their distance from the protesters.