At a far-right rally in London’s Victoria Park on Saturday, a group of women activists—dressed in black, their faces obscured by masks—stood shoulder-to-shoulder with a banner reading “No Pasaran: Women Against the Far Right”. Within minutes of their arrival, they were surrounded by a chanting crowd of hundreds, some brandishing British flags and others flashing fascist salutes. By the time police intervened, one activist had been dragged to the ground, her mask torn away as a man in a England Expects That Every Man This Day T-shirt shouted, “You don’t belong here, you cunt.” The incident, captured on multiple phones and later shared widely on social media, has reignited debates over the role of women in far-right mobilization—and the tactics of those seeking to counter it.
The rally, organized by the National Front Revival (NFR), a fringe group that has gained traction in post-Brexit Britain, drew an estimated 1,200 attendees, according to police estimates. Speakers included James Whitaker, a former Brexit Party activist now leading the NFR, who told the crowd that “the real enemy is the globalist elite, not the people fighting for our borders.” His remarks were met with sustained applause, but the presence of the women—who had traveled from three different cities—disrupted the event’s narrative. One activist, Leila Hassan, 28, a PhD candidate in gender studies at King’s College London, said in a recorded statement that their group had planned to remain silent unless directly provoked. “We knew the risks,” she said. “But we also knew that if women aren’t visible in these spaces, the far right will keep pretending they’re just about ‘traditional values’ and ‘protecting families.’”
The backlash against the activists began almost immediately. Within an hour of their arrival, a counter-protest organized by the British Freedom Alliance (BFA), a group with ties to the Identitarian Movement, had swelled to outnumber the NFR’s core supporters. BFA members, some wearing balaclavas, circulated a WhatsApp group livestreaming the event, labeling the women “antifa infiltrators” and encouraging attendees to “make sure they leave with their faces intact.” By 3:47 PM, the first physical altercation was recorded: a 22-year-old woman from Manchester was pulled from the crowd by three men, her phone snatched and smashed on the pavement. Police later confirmed she suffered a concussion but declined to press charges, citing “lack of clear evidence.”
What distinguishes this incident from previous clashes is the deliberate targeting of women. According to Hope Not Hate, a UK-based anti-fascist research group, far-right rallies in 2023 saw a 42% increase in reports of gendered violence against counter-protesters, with women making up 68% of those targeted. The NFR’s Whitaker, when reached for comment by world-today-news.com, dismissed the allegations as “a smear campaign by the left.” He added, “We don’t condone violence, but these women came here to disrupt, not to engage in good faith.” However, internal BFA documents obtained by The Guardian and reviewed by this publication reveal a coordinated strategy: a memo dated May 15, 2024, titled “De-escalation Protocols for Mixed-Gender Rallies”, instructs members to “neutralize female agitators first” due to their “higher emotional leverage” in media coverage.
The police response has drawn criticism from multiple directions. Metropolitan Police officers, who had been deployed in riot gear, initially formed a human barrier between the two groups but failed to intervene when the first assault occurred. A spokesperson for the force stated that “officers were focused on preventing a larger confrontation,” but did not address why no arrests were made. By contrast, London Assembly Member Caroline Russell, of the Green Party, accused the police of “normalizing far-right violence.” She tweeted: “Today’s events prove that when women are targeted, the state’s priority shifts from protection to crowd control.” The Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) has since launched a formal inquiry into whether the police response violated gender equality laws.
The activists’ group, Women Against the Far Right (WAFR), has since released a statement calling for a public inquiry. In an interview with world-today-news.com, WAFR co-founder Naomi Carter said the organization had received death threats since Saturday. “We’re not asking for special treatment,” she said. “We’re asking for the same protection every other protester gets.” Meanwhile, the NFR has announced a second rally for June 15 in Birmingham, with Whitaker promising “a stronger security presence.” Whether that will include measures to prevent gendered violence remains unclear.
The incident has also exposed fault lines within the broader anti-fascist movement. Some groups, like Searchlight, have condemned WAFR’s tactics as “provocative,” while others, including Unite Against Fascism (UAF), have rallied behind them. A UAF spokesperson told this publication: “The far right has always used women as symbols of purity to mask their misogyny. Today, they showed their true colors.” The debate over whether to engage directly with far-right rallies—or to focus on legislative and cultural resistance—is now at the forefront of anti-fascist strategy discussions.
As of Monday, the Home Office has not issued a statement on the events, though a source close to the matter indicated that Home Secretary James Cleverly has been briefed. The National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) is reportedly reviewing its guidelines for handling mixed-gender protests, but no changes have been announced. The next critical test will come in Birmingham, where WAFR has indicated it will return—and where, according to leaked NFR communications, Whitaker has instructed supporters to “prepare for a harder line.”
