One of the organizers behind the upcoming rallies against mass migration has conceded that the Sydney march cannot take place on the Harbour Bridge as previously planned, due to the Sydney Marathon being scheduled for the same day.
Thousands of Australians, who identify as patriotic, are set to protest against mass migration on August 31, with events confirmed in six major cities nationwide.
The initial plan was for the Sydney rally to cross over the Harbour Bridge, taking inspiration from the pro-Palestine demonstration earlier this month that halted the CBD.
However, due to a significant planning oversight, the rally’s timing conflicts not only with the marathon—which also takes place on the bridge—but with the routine pro-Palestine protest in the CBD. As a result, organizers have shifted the location to Belmore Park, near Central Station.
It’s understood the August 31 date was chosen by the university student who launched the movement online, without checking the bridge’s availability.
‘When the date was set out at random, the person who chose it wasn’t aware of the events already scheduled in each state,’ explained Sydney rally organizer ‘Bec Freedom’ to 2GB’s Ben Fordham.
She added, ‘Although the roads are blocked, we will still gather at Belmore Park and proceed with the march, which has full police approval.’
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
‘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.’
Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke has condemned the rally as ‘un-Australian.’
‘There is no place in our country for people who seek to divide and undermine our social cohesion,’ he said.
Under the Albanese government, a staggering 457,560 permanent and long-term migrants arrived in Australia last financial year.
That figure included international students who commonly take low-wage jobs while studying, and apply for long-term residency when their course is completed.
The record inflows of migrants have been the major factor in the exponential rise of house prices, consequent mortgage debt, and rental shortages.
While those factors had sparked resentment among some, left-wing social commentator Abbie Chatfield urged Australians to reject the protests.
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
‘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,’ she said.
Although the March for Australia flyer insists the event is ‘peaceful and not intended to incite hate or violence,’ Freedom has faced backlash over leaked audio from an X Spaces chat in which nationalists needed to use violent confrontation akin to 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.
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.’
