Premier Christian News has said that one of its freelance reporters was assaulted at Tommy Robinson’s Unite the Kingdom rally last weekend.
The Metropolitan Police have estimated that there were between 100,000 to 150,000 people present, although both supporters and detractors of the movement who were present estimate the real figure could be close to a million.
Supporters praised it for its positive atmosphere, but there were also reports of some violence.
David Campanale, reporting for Premier Christian News, said he was punched, pushed and chased by members of the crowd. He was thankfully unharmed.
"The official anthem of the march was 'Come one, come all', but for some on the march, they didn't want that to include journalists covering the event in an impartial, open-minded way," Campanale said.
He said he had attended the event to report on "the perspective of Christians who joined the rally" and "the claimed Christian sentiments expressed from the stage by leaders and endorsed by Tommy Robinson himself".
Robinson reportedly converted to Christianity during his most recent stint in prison. Pastor Rikki Doolan told Premier it happened during a prison visit.
According to the police, 26 of their officers were injured in violence with protestors, four of them seriously, and 25 demonstrators were arrested, although that is considerably fewer than the 423 people arrested at the Notting Hill Carnival this year.
Trevor Phillips, the former head of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, was at the rally and told Sky News that those present were not the last remaining dregs of the BNP or National Front, but “normal people” who are angry at the failure of the political class to hear their concerns.
Some present spoke of a carnival atmosphere, with activist Billboard Chris, real name Chris Elston, saying he was having an “amazing day”. Elston who was due to speak at the event but never had the chance to deliver his speech due to the unexpected virtual appearance of tech billionaire Elon Musk.
Peter McIlvenna, author at The Federalist, also described the rally in positive terms, saying, “The gospel choir that were there … it was actually true worship, and the people on the front leading, I thought I was in Kensington temple on the Sunday morning, and not in the middle of Westminster on a Saturday.
“The worship was beautiful … they were worshiping and they were leading people who were. There is something powerful about that. Maybe many of them there are not Christians. [But] maybe that could have been their first encounter with Christ.”
