Nurses, college students join Occupy Boston demonstration

“Our goal is not to make arrests,’’ Greeley, backed by about 10 officers, told reporters while awaiting the protesters’ decision. “[But] if they keep pushing the limits and breaking the law, they are going to get arrested.’’

After a 15-minute standoff, the demonstrators pulled back. No protesters were arrested, a police spokeswoman said.

Around 2:30 p.m., hundreds of members of the Massachusetts Nurses Association, which is holding its annual convention in Newton, rolled up in three buses. Their appearance lent a measure of credibility to the demonstrators, who draw inspiration from ongoing Occupy Wall Street demonstrations in New York.

The nurses joined protesters and marched around Dewey Square, chanting slogans such as: “Hey Wall Street, stop your lying. Because of you the country’s dying.’’

“Your movement has inspired millions across the country,’’ said Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the nurses union. Nurses support the movement, she said, because they have seen the damage done by economic inequality when sick people cannot afford much-needed treatment or diagnostic procedures.

Also on hand was Cornel West, the author, activist, and Princeton University professor who formerly taught at Harvard. He likened the protest to historical movements for freedom and justice and said the movement was not about hate, but love.

“The struggle for justice is what love looks like in public,’’ West told the demonstrators, repeating one of his one most-quoted statements.

The rally then moved to the streets, rolling past the Fiduciary Trust Building on Federal Street and then to the High Street office of the investment firm Goldman Sachs .

There, police on bicycles created a makeshift barricade at the front doors. Workers in the building peered out to see the commotion.