One of the organisers of the upcoming anti-mass migration rallies has admitted the march will not go ahead on the Sydney Harbour Bridge after a planning blunder – with the Sydney Marathon scheduled on the same day.
Tens of thousands of self-described patriotic Australians have vowed to take to the streets on August 31 against mass migration, with rallies already confirmed in six capital cities across the country.
The Sydney march was originally planned to cross the Sydney Harbour Bridge, with organisers hoping to mirror the pro-Palestine rally that brought the CBD to a standstill.
But in a major planning blunder, the rally clashes with the Sydney Marathon and the weekly pro-Palestine protest in the CBD, forcing organisers to relocate the event to Belmore Park.
It’s understood the August 31 date was ‘randomly’ chosen by a university student who launched the movement online, unaware it coincided with the Sydney Marathon – one of the city’s biggest annual events.
Sydney rally organiser, known online as ‘Bec Freedom’, has conceded that the event will be affected by both the city marathon and the weekly pro-Palestine protest.
‘Unfortunately, when a date gets put out there randomly like that, the person had no idea that was on in terms of events in each state,’ Freedom told 2GB’s Ben Fordham.
‘We do have the marathon on in Sydney as well, as the Palestine protest that happens every Sunday.
Bec Freedom has admitted that a mistake was made when August 31 was ‘randomly’ chosen for the March for Australia rallies
The rally clashes with the Sydney Marathon, the city’s biggest running event
‘Unfortunately, the roads are blocked off already but we’ll be continuing to meet up in Belmore Park and continuing on with the march, which is completely approved by police.
‘They’ve been working with me, and it’s been great.
‘As good as it would have been to have it on the bridge, we can’t. There’s a marathon on, which happens every single year,’ she said.
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has condemned the rally, calling it ‘un-Australian.’
‘There is no place in our country for people who seek to divide and undermine our social cohesion.’
Meanwhile, social media star Abbie Chatfield urged all Australians to reject the protests.
‘They claim that it is about cost of living, they claim that it is about Australia gaining itself back, winning Australia back, taking Australia back – from whom, no one knows.’
Although the March for Australia flyer insists the event is ‘peaceful and not intended to incite hate or violence,’ Freedom has faced backlash after leaked audio from an X Spaces chat revealed her saying ‘we need to see violence’ like the 2005 Cronulla Riots.
‘We need violence, I’m sorry, but we need f**king violence,’ she was heard saying.
‘We’ve done peaceful, peaceful hasn’t done s**t. I don’t think that anything significant is going to change unless something like that does happen again. Until we stand up and do something like that day, I think it’s just going to be repeating.’
Fordham confronted her about the comments.
The March for Australia movement gained momentum online after a pro-Palestine rally attracted more than 90,000 Sydneysiders earlier this month
Thousands of patriotic Australians will take to the streets on August 31 for March for Australia
Freedom apologised for making the comments but claimed that Fordham had taken the clip ‘out of context’.
‘The fact is, if we’re talking about August 31, I’m liaising with the police, I’m making sure our protests avoid the Palestinians for that reason, because my goal is to make sure everyone stays safe,’ she said.
‘That is what I said, yes, and I’ve since apologised for putting fear into anyone. That was not my intent. It was taken the wrong way.
‘I’m sorry, but all I can say is I’m working very closely with the police for August 31 and I’m trying my hardest to make sure everyone stays safe.’
