Thousands in London March to Back, Oppose Far-Right Leader

Thousands of supporters of jailed far-right activist Tommy Robinson marched through London on Saturday as anti-racism demonstrators mounted a nearby counterprotest. The so-called Unite the Kingdom march—planned by Robinson and supposed to feature him as speaker—led to calls for his freedom after his arrest Friday on a warrant for contempt of court. "We want Tommy out," the crowd of mostly white men chanted, the AP reports. The sea of marchers toted Union and England flags, and some waved "Make America Great" banners as they gathered in the square opposite the Houses of Parliament.

The march was countered by thousands of people organized by the group Stand Up to Racism who held signs saying "Refugees welcome" and "Oppose Tommy Robinson." Robinson, 41, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, is the founder of the nationalist and anti-Islamist English Defense League and remains one of the most influential far-right figures in Britain. He has been blamed for stirring up protests that turned into a week of violent disorder across England and Belfast, Northern Ireland, this summer after social media users falsely identified the suspect in a stabbing rampage that killed three young girls in the seaside community of Southport as an immigrant and a Muslim.

Robinson supporters railed against the jailing of hundreds of rioters who assaulted police officers, set cars ablaze, screamed racist epithets, and attacked hotels housing asylum seekers. At least five people were arrested at the rallies, Metropolitan Police said. Robinson, who has been jailed in the past for assault, contempt of court, and mortgage fraud, faces a hearing Monday in a contempt-of-court proceeding for allegedly violating a 2021 High Court order prohibiting him from repeating libelous allegations against a Syrian refugee who successfully sued him. While Robinson was barred from Twitter in 2018, per the AP, he was allowed back after Elon Musk took over the social network and rebranded it X. He now has 1 million followers.

(More London stories.)