A large anti-racism crowd has dwarfed limited anti-immigration protestors in Belfast city centre on Friday. An anti-immigration protest took place outside Belfast City Hall while a counter anti-racism protest was in the same location.
The counter anti-racism protest with ‘Unity Over Division’ was planned at Belfast City Hall from 4.30pm to 7pm. The ad for the protest urged people to “take a stand against racism, fascism and Islamophobia by attending the peaceful counter protest.” It significantly outnumbered the original anti-immigration protest.
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PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Melanie Jones said: “From today [Friday] our officers may have additional powers to stop and search or require the removal of face coverings,” she said.
“Our officers will have all the appropriate tactics to tackle disorder and criminal behaviour the likes of we have seen in the past week.”
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