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Around 25,000 people took to the streets of Britain on Wednesday night to defy the far-right and send a message that communities would not be divided by hate.
The night air fizzed with energy as anti-racist protesters chanted “we fight back”, “refugees are welcome here” and “oppose Islamophobia” across cities and towns in the UK.
Police had warned more than 100 demonstrations could take place after a week of violence from far-right hooligans who have attacked police, torched hotels, attacked ethnic minorities and subjected them to vile racist taunts.
They were cowed into submission on Wednesday and their violent thuggery was rejected across communities, a scene most effectively illustrated in Brighton, as thousands of anti-racism protesters surrounded six counter-activists.
The biggest show of force came in Walthamstow, east London, as 7,000 people gathered in the streets and chants of “smash fascism and racism” pierced the night air - with only one person turning up to chant in response to anti-racism demonstrators.
Mahmood Faez, a resident of Walthamstow, said: “It fills our hearts. Regardless of race, religion, sexuality, this sends a strong message to racists that they are not wanted and they are not needed here.
“We should be teaching hope, not hatred for another human being.”
Jo, a Walthamstow local and organiser for Stand Up to Racism, which instigated the protests throughout the country, told The Independent she hopes last night’s demonstrations will spark a mass anti-racist movement in the UK.
She said: “The atmosphere was one of defiance against the far-right who have unleashed violence across communities for the last seven days after the tragic stabbing in Southport. It was also a moment of joy and coming together between different people in the community and one of hope as so many turned out to oppose hatred and racism.
“It was the perfect antidote to the violence, bigotry and racism that has scarred communities and we believe this could be the start of a wide-ranging bigger anti-racist movement.”
The Walthamstow local added she felt mainstream politicians had sown the seeds for the violent outbreaks which led to almost 500 arrests and dozens of injured police officers.
She added: “I think a lot of the blame for this rests with the mainstream politicians who have whipped up anti-immigrant sentiment and demonised asylum seekers for years. They have created an atmosphere of hostility and focused attention on small boats and vulnerable refugees rather than on the problems created by years of austerity.
“Last night the silent majority spoke and we welcome immigrants and refugees in our communities. Refugees and immigrants teach our children, treat us in hospital and are wanted parts of our lives. Our community comprehensively rejected racism and bigotry on Wednesday night. We stand for tolerance, love and acceptance.”
Elsewhere in the country in Liverpool, pensioners held up placards which said“Nans Against Nazis”, as John Lennon’s Give Peace a Chance reverberated on repeat in the background.
Crowds in Birmingham shouted “fascist scum out of Brum”, the Lincoln Mosque shared free food and ice cream with anti-racism protesters and in Sheffield chanted pro-refugee slogans.
Anti-racist group Hope not Hate praised the attitude of communities who came out to protest, but warned there is still a chance of further violence from the far-right in the coming days.
Georgie Laming, director of campaigns, said: “From free ice creams outside a local mosque in Lincoln, to streets lined with anti-fascists in Walthamstow, communities responded bravely to a challenging night of threats of far-right demonstrations up and down the country.
“But we must not be complacent. There are communities where the far-right has been able to turn out hundreds of people over the last week and those communities are hurting.
“The real work of building up hope and meaningful action in those communities starts right now.
“There is still a large number of far-right events being discussed for this weekend and still high chances of spontaneous outbreaks so we must remember that this moment is far from over.”
Police forces were braced for a further night of violence after a hit list of immigration centres and lawyers was circulated online as the next targets for violence.
The far-right had cynically exploited the death of three children in Southport after a knife attack that sparked violent scenes in Rotherham, Liverpool, Middlesborough and Blackpool.
After the violence, around 6,000 riot officers were standing by after gatherings had been anticipated in 41 of the 43 police force areas in England and Wales.
However, they were not needed as the British public unified and stood their ground, earning praise from the police and across the political spectrum, with further large gatherings in Liverpool, Bristol and Newcastle.
Prime minister Sir Keir Starmer said events on Wednesday turned out “much better than was expected”, but warned against complacency and said police need to remain on “high alert” as he chaired a further Cobra meeting on Thursday afternoon.
The meeting comes as 20 potential gatherings and three counter-protests are planned for Thursday evening, according to the National Police Chiefs’ Council.
Referring to Wednesday’s actions, Labour MP Bell Ribiero-Addy, said on X: “Beautiful scenes of solidarity and unity last night as anti-fascists turned up across the country to send a message to the far-right. Our communities will not be divided by their hatred, their violence or their racism.
And Walthamstow Labour MP Stella Creasey said: “When I say Walthamstow is the house of love believe me the first time. Thank you to all who have kept our community safe this evening including police and public services and to every one of you who has shown solidarity in many ways to reveal who we are - honoured to be our MP.”
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley said the violent disorder was crushed by the “unity from communities and a “show of force from the police”.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, he said: “I’m really pleased with how it went. We put thousands of officers on the streets and I think the show of force from the police and frankly, the show of unity from communities together defeated the challenges that we’ve seen.”
He also told the BBC the Met had been carrying out “dawn raids” on Thursday morning, “searching for the most violent in the Whitehall protests and violence last week”, about 70 per cent of whom have criminal backgrounds.
“We’ve got criminal damage, violence, weapons offences, football banning orders. These are criminal thugs,” Sir Mark said.
Anti-racism protesters also received praise from Sadiq Khan who said the peaceful gatherings showed London “stands united against racism and Islamophobia”.
In a statement, he said: “We have seen appalling violence and disorder in towns and cities across the country in recent days, but there was no repeat in our capital overnight. The Met has worked tirelessly to make it clear that such violence will not be tolerated and that anyone seeking to engage in disorder and sow division would face the full force of the law.
He added: “I’m clear that there is no place for violence, racism, Islamophobia and antisemitism in our city and we will never let those who seek to divide our communities win.”
Home Office minister Dame Diana Johnson told the BBC: “I think what last night illustrated was the vast majority of people in this country are law-abiding, are tolerant, respect the police, want their communities to be ones that are safe for all communities and I think that that was demonstrated last night by some of what we saw on the streets with those people who came forward to make their views clear.”
