An ‘inclusive alliance’ of more than 1,000 people took part in a march that started out from Finsbury Park Mosque [All photos: Ella Jackson]

MORE than 1,000 people marched through Finsbury Park on Saturday in a show of unity against the far right.

Chants of “say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here” announced the procession which began outside Finsbury Park Mosque and brought together groups from across north London, including trade unionists, community groups, campaigners and councillors.

Organiser Paul Holborow, of Stand up to Racism, told the Tribune that this is the “inclusive alliance” needed to challenge the far right.

“Minneapolis today, the UK with Farage and ICE tomorrow,” he said, referring to the city in Minnesota where two people have been killed by federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents since the start of this year.

For anyone who doubts that we could see such violence on the streets of Finsbury Park, Mr Holborow added: “[Nigel] Farage is calling for the forcible deportation of 650,000 people, and you need a force like ICE to implement that. We only have to look at the last two summers in this country, which have seen attacks on mosques and hotels, some of them very violent. And of course the campaign of flags was totally intimidatory for many, many people.”

Saturday’s march was a precursor to a national demonstration next month, where organisers hope to match the numbers – more than 100,000 people – who attended Tommy Robinson’s right-wing rally last September.

There was also the spectre of a by-election in Manchester’s Gorton and Denton constituency in just under two weeks, expected to be a tight race between Reform UK, Labour and the Greens.

Addressing the crowd outside Finsbury Park, leader of Islington Green Party councillor Benali Hamdache said: “I am the son of a migrant and I always reflect back to the stories that my dad used to tell in the 70s and 80s. He grew up as an Arab, as a Muslim in this country, and some of those stories were horrifying.

“But he saw things get better – things improved in the 90s and noughties, we were taking on racism. But the sad reality is that things that weren’t acceptable in the 90s and noughties are said out loud by fascists in suits every day on TV.”

He blamed the Labour Party for fuelling the rise of Reform UK by “cutting budgets” and “enabling racist rhetoric”.

Speaking after the march, Cllr Hamdache told the Tribune: “Everything gets blamed on immigrants – the housing crisis, the NHS crisis, the cost of living crisis. It’s important that we point at who is responsible, and that’s the rich and the powerful, not people coming over on boats.”

He added: “Islington is the butt of a lot of jokes, but that’s because it’s a thriving, multicultural place that is at ease with itself.”

• Visit www.togetheralliance.org.uk for more details about the anti-fascist Together march on March 28.