Cambridge residents, families, and children gathered on Donkey Common on Saturday (10/08) to protest against the recent violence across the UK.

Organised by Stand Up To Racism, the protest was described by attendees to BBC News as a “celebration of humanity” and an “important moment”.

The event comes amid violent anti-immigration riots in which hundreds of people have been arrested following the fatal stabbings of three children in Southport on 29 July.

The protest also followed nationwide counter-protests to far-right riots planned last Wednesday (07/08), amid fears of another night of violence.

The event was supported by members of the University of Cambridge University and Colleges Union, the National Education Union, and Unite the Union.

Members of the local Labour council were also in attendance, with Neil Shayler, an event organiser, saying the goal of the anti-racism protests was to “dampen the spirit of fear”.

Following these riots, Cambridge students have shown concern for their safety on student confessions page Camfess. Undergraduates are set to return to the University in October.

In a statement released last week urging resistance to division, the University leadership stated: “we are one community and will resist every attempt to polarise us along racial or religious lines.”

The statement, written by Pro-Vice Chancellors Kamal Munir and Bhaskar Vira, condemned the riots, describing them as “dreadful thuggery”.

Lord Simon Woolley, President of Homerton College, also expressed his outrage in an interview with ITV, calling the riots a “gross exploitation of an utter tragedy”. He reiterated this in an email sent to Homerton students last week.

Alice Gilderdale, deputy leader of Cambridge City Council, echoed these concerns, saying “Cambridge is no place for hate,” in a message delivered to Stand Up to Racism.