UK holds massive anti-racism rally but far-right protests fall short

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Thousands of anti-racism demonstrators turned out in towns and cities across England on Wednesday night to protest against a long-rumoured wave of far-right unrest that ultimately did not take place.

In the evening, large rallies broke out in Liverpool, Brighton, Bristol, Newcastle and London to defend a series of locations believed to be targets of violence, including refugee charities and immigration lawyers.

Despite fears that the evening’s events would repeat the racist attacks and civil unrest that had occurred in the country in previous days, anti-racism protesters encountered little resistance and many demonstrations dispersed within a few hours.

Over the past week, the UK has been hit by riots and widespread violent unrest, sparked by the killing of three children in Southport on 29 July.

The tragedy, which began after false information spread online that the man who carried out the attack was a Muslim asylum seeker, turned into a wave of riots, much of which was sparked by far-right groups.

Hotels hosting asylum seekers were attacked and set on fire as violence spread over the weekend.

Before Wednesday night, a list purportedly of more than 30 far-right targets circulated online, sparking a nationwide police response and dozens of counter-demonstrations by anti-racism groups.

The south coast city of Brighton reflected scenes across the country, with carnival-like pro-immigration demonstrations meeting little opposition.

Four far-right activists were cornered by police at a doorway across from an immigration law firm that was the target of a far-right attack earlier this week.

Around 2,000 counter-protesters jeered them, chanting “From the Downs to the sea, Brighton will no longer be fascist”.

As of 23:30, the crowd had dispersed and police reported that no arrests had been made.

Ali Ceesay, who works for a women’s rights group, said it had been a decade since the last major far-right march in the city.

“That’s why they’re not here,” she said, pointing to a motley gathering of anti-fascist groups and residents, young and old, who had gathered again to drive the far-right out of town.

“It’s important to keep it that way,” she said.

Ahead of tonight’s demonstrations, shops in many towns and city centres closed early, particularly in areas that experienced unrest at the weekend.

Police and regional leaders sent messages of comfort to the public, who are concerned, especially in the Muslim community, that the weekend’s scenes could be repeated.

The government has pledged to establish a “standing force” of 6,000 riot police across the country, while riot police insist they will be well-equipped to deal with any spontaneous violence.

However, apart from a few isolated incidents, including eight arrests in Croydon – which the Metropolitan Police said were unrelated and “purely anti-social behaviour” – and a handful of arrests across the country, the night’s events appeared to have gone smoothly.

Liverpool, about 20 miles from Southport, was one of the areas hit by violent riots last weekend. However, a community-led counter-protest took to the city’s streets on Friday night, with women holding placards reading “Women Against Nazis”.

Hundreds of anti-racism protesters took to the streets again on Wednesday night to defend a shelter charity that was reportedly targeted by the far right, and they encountered no obvious disturbances. As in many other towns, the demonstration itself did not cause any obvious disturbances, and by 9:30pm the demonstrators had largely dispersed.