Billy Bragg praised the massive London march on March 28 as a strong signal to far-right figures in the UK, declaring that the British public refuses to be deceived by such tactics.
March Details and Turnout
The Together Alliance organized the protest, which drew an estimated half a million participants to central London’s streets. Demonstrators rallied for unity and raised awareness about the rising far-right threat at home and abroad. The event featured a ‘House Against Hate’ stage in Trafalgar Square.
Bragg’s Reflections and Performance
Bragg performed at the event alongside artists including Self Esteem, Hot Chip, Jessie Ware, Katy B, and The Specials’ Jerry Dammers. He described feeling greatly inspired by the turnout.
“The concerns that people have about rising cost of living, widening gaps between the rich and poor, an over-stretched NHS, the lack of affordable housing and the effects of the climate crisis cannot be solved by rounding up people of colour and forcing them to ‘remigrate’,” Bragg stated.
He targeted far-right politicians pushing remigration ahead of the next election: “Yesterday suggests that the people of Britain will not allow themselves to be fooled by such shysters.”
Bragg compared the march to the Rock Against Racism and Anti-Nazi League campaigns of the late 1970s. He highlighted the strong presence of young attendees, hoping to spark a new generation of activists in the anti-fascist tradition dating back to the 1936 Battle of Cable Street.
During his set, Bragg addressed last year’s Unite the Kingdom march organized by Tommy Robinson, calling it the most divisive event in the country over the past decade. “Commentators were saying these people have justified concerns – that may be the case, but their solutions are not justifiable in any way,” he told the crowd. “Remigration, the forced deportation of our fellow citizens, we’ve seen what that looks like in the USA. And if it does come to that in this country, then we will have to be as courageous as the people of Minneapolis.”
Key Speakers
Green Party leader Zack Polanski urged action: “Go back to your communities, to the community centres, to your trade unions, to your friends, to your neighbours. We must organise in our communities. Local elections are coming in just a few weeks’ time.”
He added, “There have been dark times, I know people have been scared and we have been afraid, but days like this are here to send a message – a message to Tommy Robinson, to Nigel Farage, to those who appease them. We will defeat hate. It’s time to make hope normal again.”
Hannah Spencer MP, who recently won the Gorton and Denton by-election for the Greens, also spoke on the stage.
Broader Context
The demonstration responded to far-right protests over recent years. In September 2025, the Metropolitan Police estimated 110,000 to 150,000 attendees at the ‘Unite the Kingdom’ rally in central London, featuring speakers like Tommy Robinson and Elon Musk. Around 5,000 anti-fascist counter-protesters opposed it.
In 2024, thousands joined anti-racism rallies across the UK following anti-immigrant protests after the Southport killings. Participants then included Billy Bragg, Nadine Shah, Tim Burgess, and Garbage.
