Far-right activist Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley Lennon, has organised the Unite the Kingdom march for Saturday, September 13 featuring appearances by Jordan Peterson and Katie Hopkins
Muslims in London should not change their plans despite a rally organised by far-right activist Tommy Robinson, the Metropolitan Police have said.
Far-right activist Tommy Robinson, real name Stephen Yaxley Lennon, has organised the Unite the Kingdom march for Saturday, September 13.
Demonstrators have been told to arrive in Stamford Street, near Waterloo Bridge, to march towards the southern end of Whitehall. The police force has said about 1,000 officers are set to be deployed in the capital to prevent any clashes, Birmingham Live reports.
Robinson has touted the march and rally as the UK’s biggest free speech festival, claiming thousands of supporters are expected to show up. Controversial speakers including commentator Jordan Peterson and Katie Hopkins are due to attend.
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Despite the right-wing presence on London’s streets today, Muslim Londoners “should be able to feel safe travelling into and around London,” the Met has insisted.
Commander Clair Haynes, who is in charge of the public order policing operation in London this weekend, said: “We recognise that there are particular concerns for many in London’s Muslim communities ahead of the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ protest given the record of anti-Muslim rhetoric and incidents of offensive chanting by a minority at previous marches.
“There have been some suggestions that Muslim Londoners should change their behaviour this Saturday, including not coming into town.
“That is not our advice. Everyone should be able to feel safe travelling into and around London. Our officers are there to ensure that is the case and we’d urge anyone who is out on Saturday and feels concerned to speak to us.”
Robinson has called for a peaceful gathering, in a post on X, formerly Twitter, the organiser said: “It’s not a time for riots. It’s not a time for violence.
“It’s a time where you come and you stand proudly for your country.” He added: “This is an imperative message and an important message: we have to control ourselves.”
Stand Up To Racism (SUTR) has organised a counter-protest, dubbed the March Against Fascism, which is planned to start at Russell Square from midday. This march is planned to head to Kingsway, Aldwych and the Strand to the northern end of Whitehall for a rally.
Hundreds of women, including independent MP Diane Abbott, will lead marchers SUTR said. “Our demonstration will be sending a message loud and clear: we are united against the far right threat. Women don’t need the far right to keep us safe,” Samira Ali, national organiser for SUTR, said.
Cops will erect barriers to keep distance between the two groups, the Met has said, with officers deployed to surrounding roads to “minimise the risk of disorder” during the demonstrations. Limitations will also be in place on where and when campaigners can protest, under the Public Order Act.
Police are facing a busy day in the city, with five Premier League football matches set to take place on Saturday, including derbies between West Ham and Tottenham, as well as Brentford and Chelsea. More than 1,600 officers will be deployed in total across the city, with 500 brought in from other forces, the Metropolitan Police said.
Ms Haynes said: “This will be a very busy day with protest, sporting fixtures, concerts and other events. The Met is used to delivering the sort of complex and large-scale policing operation that is required to keep the public safe, and we have a detailed plan to do so on Saturday.
“I am grateful to the many hundreds of Met officers who are being deployed away from their day-to-day roles and to the 500 or so officers from around the country who have responded to our request for support. The main focus of the operation is on the two protests in central London.
“We will approach them as we do any other protests, policing without fear or favour, ensuring people can exercise their lawful rights, but being robust in dealing with incidents or offences should they occur. In the run-up to the protests we have been in close contact with the organisers, with local business and community representatives, and with representatives of communities across London more broadly.
“We would ask all those taking part in the protests to be considerate of the communities they are passing through to ensure disruption is kept to a minimum. Officers will take a firm line on behaviour that is discriminatory or that crosses the line from protest into hate crime.”
