Tommy Robinson’s march through central London has been transformed into a fundraising initiative for refugees, raising more than £130,000 so far.
The aim is that the further he and his estimated 50,000 supporters walk on their Unite the Kingdom rally this afternoon, the more money will be raised.
Charity Choose Love, which supports refugees and displaced people around the globe, set up the initiative ‘Tommy Chooses Love’, encouraging supporters to ‘pledge as little as 2p’ for every metre the group march.
CEO and co-founder Josie Fernandez Martello told Metro they don’t condone the march in any way: ‘This is not about celebrating it, it is about drowning out hate with love and sending an even louder message that refugees are welcome here.’
Last year, Robinson’s rally covered 1.5km, so the non-profit predicts this year’s march from Kingsway, along The Strand, via Trafalgar Square and down to Whitehall will see one individual’s 2p pledge per metre amount to a £30 donation.
Despite only being launched two weeks ago, support has been widespread, and the charity have announced they have now hit over £100,000 in donations.
As well as gaining engagement through social media, the group have taken to platsering hot pink posters throughout the streets of London. They read ‘TOMMY ROBINSON IS CHOOSING LOVE (AND THERE’S NOTHING HE CAN DO ABOUT IT)’.’
‘It’s about standing up to anti refugee rhetoric that’s taking hold in the UK and trying to mobilise everyone who disagrees into action that will provide real tangible support,’ Fernandez Martello said.
‘Refugees make up less than 1% of the population in the UK. They are not the reason that people can’t get a job, or proper housing or an appointment at the GP.
‘All of these problems are very real in the UK right now and urgently need addressing, but they are problems created by years of austerity, cuts, economic impacts from the COVID pandemic and more.
‘These problems lie with the UK Government to solve, and we need to be really careful not to fall into scapegoating vulnerable groups for problems they had absolutely nothing to do with.’
While the majority of engagement with the idea online has been overwhelmingly positive, some members of the public have concerns.
One user wrote: ‘We should be taking every possible measure to stop them from moving a single step. There can be no celebration in them marching.
‘The right getting to march is not an inherent truth and we have lost something in accepting that it is.’
At the time of writing, the ‘Tommy Chooses Love’ initiative has raised over £130,000 and has seen collaboration from celebrities such as Nish Kumar, as well as interactions from Jameela Jamil and Sharron Gaffka.
Money raised will go towards support for refugees, from hot meals and shelter for displaced people to emergency search and rescue missions.
‘We also put the money towards care for unaccompanied children, support for LGBTQ asylum seekers and holistic care for pregnant women,’ Fernandez Martello said.
‘The money will go towards providing essentials for newborn babies, education workshops, training for anti-racism and so much more.’
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