On Saturday 28th March, a group of us set off to London to join the ‘Together Alliance’ march and we had a brilliant day out!
‘Together’ is an alliance of hundreds of civil society organisations united against the far right. This includes trade unions, faith groups, politicians from a range of parties, charities and campaigning groups including Stand Up To Racism, Greenpeace, Woodcraft Folk, Global Justice, and of course Friends of the Earth. Plus thousands of individuals from across the UK (find out more at https://www.togetheralliance.org.uk/).
Five coaches went to London from Leicester on the day, and we were on one organised by Climate Action Leicester & Leicestershire, along with lots of other groups. We arrived in London and joined the Climate Justice bloc on Park Lane. As we waited for the march to start, we chatted, painted faces, laughed at some of the inventive banners and were entertained by drummers.
The march set off from Park Lane at 1pm, travelling down Piccadilly to Trafalgar Square and on to Westminster, with music at Trafalgar Square creating a party atmosphere and inspiring speeches at Westminster. Or so we heard, as we didn’t actually make it that far! We didn’t set off until 2.45 pm, marching down Park Lane and then halfway down Piccadilly, accompanied by drums and singing, a big XR boat and a great atmosphere, before we had to head across Green Park to meet our coach.
But the waiting didn’t dampen spirits because it was for a good reason – the march was huge! Organisers estimate there were 500,000 there, united in standing up to the far right, celebrating the diversity of the country and calling for more hope and less hate in our politics, media and beyond. It was a great event to be part of.
By Jenny Whillis
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