On May 16th, the “Unite the Kingdom, Unite the West” rally will take place in London, promising a larger turnout than the previous Unite the Kingdom gathering, which drew more than 100,000 attendees in September 2025.
The rally is hosted by far-right extremist Tommy Robinson, co-founder and former leader of the English Defence League (EDL) and a central figure in the transnational anti-Muslim “counter-jihad” movement. Earlier this year, Robinson spearheaded a tour in the U.S., meeting with prominent conservative influencers and lawmakers, speaking at the University of Florida about what he called the “Islamic invasion”, appearing on popular right-wing podcasts to spread conspiracy theories, and even visiting the U.S. Department of State, per invitation, in what he described as an effort of “making alliances and friendships”. One of the key stated objectives of Robinson’s visit to the U.S. was to “generate excitement” for the upcoming rally.
The rally represents the epitome of transnational far-right mobilization and activism. Past speakers in 2025 included Elon Musk (who made an address remotely), French far-right politician Éric Zemmour, Dutch commentator Eva Vlaardingerbroek, Polish MEP Dominik Tarczyński, German MP and AfD politician Petr Bystron, Belgian politician and member of the far-right Vlaams Belang Filip Dewinter, leader of the far-right Danish People’s Party and MEP Morten Messerschmidt, and American Republican political candidate Valentina Gomez.
This year, seven far-right activists are barred from entry to the UK on the grounds that their participation in the upcoming rally “would not be conducive to the public good.” These include former speakers Dewinter, Vlaardingerbroek, and Gomez, as well as the Catalan influencer Ada Lluch. As for the American activists, Gomez is a well-known provocateur for spreading Islamophobic, homophobic, and anti-immigrant bigotry and incitement to violence. At the rally in 2025, she made remarks that “rapist Muslims” were “taking over” the UK with the support of Labour PM Keir Starmer and the Metropolitan Police. Also barred from entering the UK ahead of the rally is MAGA influencer Joey Mannarino, who claimed in a previous speech at the March for Remigration organized by far-right party Britain First that “we need to deport the parasites who are raping their way through America, Europe and the United Kingdom.”
Narratives of Decline and Disinformation
While steeped in a nationalist vision with a focus on “the people of the United Kingdom”, the ‘Unite the Kingdom, Unite the West’ rally has gained transatlantic resonance among far-right supporters. This can partly be explained by the significance that the city of London has long occupied in the far-right imaginary. Narratives of “London has fallen”, of becoming a “no-go zone”, or suffering under a “Sharia takeover” are popular talking points which refer to the idea that multiculturalism in the capital has created a white British majority that feels unsafe due to the presence of primarily Muslim communities. Such narratives are framed in conspiratorial terms, with reference to the Great Replacement theory and white genocide, alleging that Muslims are plotting to “Islamicize” Europe through immigration and higher birth rates, aided by leftist political and media ‘globalist elites’.
Popular Instagram accounts, for instance, feature AI-generated content using the POV in the future genre to create fabricated videos that portray European cities like London in 2050 as sites of urban decay, filth, and poverty under Islamic occupation. Publicity for the rally also includes content by an AI-generated far-right rapper named Danny Bones, whose track ‘This Is England’ depicts scenes of London and the country through dereliction and crime.
The first Muslim mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is frequently targeted as symbolically ushering in this dystopian state of decline. Recent research commissioned by the Greater London Authority finds that chronic mis- and disinformation poses risks to marginalized groups, systematically undermines trust in public institutions, and threatens democratic functions.
The GLA’s analysis highlights three main topics of online mis/disinformation circulating through narratives. Firstly, claims that London is unsafe or in decline, which often rely on selective reporting or decontextualized crime data to suggest wider patterns of decline, and a related focus on risks to women and girls by using emotive framing to target migrants and minority groups. Secondly, narratives relating to migration, population change, and cultural identity, with claims such as “no-go” areas, “Islamisation”, demographic replacement, or preferential treatment for minority groups. And thirdly, narratives about policing and protest activity whereby accusations of “two-tier” policing (that police treat some groups differently to others) is prevalent. Importantly, these narratives are being promoted not only by domestic actors but also by foreign actors to strategically influence or manipulate public opinion and sow division.
The upcoming rally represents the perfect storm merging all three topics of online mis/disinformation. It formulates as the basis of its claims that being authentically British equates to a white identity stemming from a shared culture, civilization, and heritage that is allegedly under attack from foreign, invasive “others” (i.e., Muslims). It refers to “a period of significant national change” as coded language for demographic shifts and sensationalized public safety concerns. Relatedly, it seeks to question the legitimacy of public authorities for serving in the interests of ‘the people’, claiming an infringement on “free speech”.
Transatlantic Alliances and Electoral Gains
While the rally organizers have engaged in careful framing around the event and encourage “peaceful protest,” a member of the neo-Nazi group Patriotic Alternative posted on Facebook, calling upon rally marchers to partake in Islamophobic abuse, violently confront Jews, threaten LGBTQ+ individuals, and display Nazi salutes, thus revealing the extreme stance of some participants.
Local elections held across the country last week further reveal the uptake of these narratives. In London, the council candidate for West Harrow was suspended by the Conservative Party after a series of social media posts expressing support for Tommy Robinson and calling for “mass deportations” of Afghan refugees. Nonetheless, Reform UK has gained a significant boost, adding more than 1,450 seats, including its first London council seat in Havering.
Previously, the Brexit Party, far-right Reform UK, under the leadership of Nigel Farage campaigns on an anti-immigration platform, including the mass detention and deportation of illegal migrants. Elon Musk has been a vocal supporter of Farage and Reform UK, at one point considering a donation of $100 million to the party, but the two had a rift following Musk’s public support for Tommy Robinson.
Hosting the rally in London immediately following nationwide local elections not only draws attention to these issues in the capital but also serves as a mobilizing site for transnational far-right alliances to reclaim public space and voice.
Ahead of the rally, Robinson met with key European conservative and far-right figures in Paris under the banner of “Make Europe Great Again”, aimed to strengthen cooperation between European right-wing movements and Trump-aligned conservatives in the U.S. Robinson delivered a keynote address at the gathering, framing the upcoming rally as an opportunity for public mobilization aimed towards “the revival of our continent’s Judeo-Christian heritage.”
As documented in the CSOH report on the latest anti-Muslim hate campaign spearheaded by Republican lawmakers in the U.S., European cities such as London and Paris are framed as having been “destroyed” or “conquered” by Islam through mass immigration and the spread of Sharia law, creating a sense of urgency and call to action. The U.S., it is argued, must take drastic measures to prevent a similar situation from unfolding or else face civilizational collapse. GOP lawmakers spreading this discourse include Rep. Chip Roy and Rep. Randy Fine, who are featured in interviews on Robinson’s YouTube channel from his visit to the U.S.
Prime Minister Starmer expressed in a post on X that “we will not allow people to come to the UK, threaten our communities and spread hate on our streets” in response to the ban on the entry of far-right leaders ahead of the rally. Londoners themselves took to the streets to rally against the far-right following the September event, standing against the “politics of division” in a crowd of more than half a million. Yet, Starmer’s statement ignores the key role that Robinson plays in facilitating far-right transnational connections to galvanize support, not as an “imported” problem but one that results from sustained international alliances. Of greater concern is the pace at which far-right ideas are being mainstreamed by elected officials on both sides of the Atlantic, which poses a greater threat to social cohesion and democratic resilience.
The “Unite the Kingdom” rally should not be viewed as a one-off protest event, but the result of a coordinated effort that brings together an international constellation of far-right actors and networks. This is a long cry from Robinson’s early EDL days, marked by demonstrations and hooliganism. Today, the British far-right scene has become a professional operation: backed by foreign funders, circulating chronic disinformation and synthetic content on social media, and amplified by supporters in public office.