Peterborough protests: 'I am so proud that Peterborough has stood together to reject hate'- City MP thanks community following peaceful gatherings
There have been no far-right riots take in Peterborough.
Peterborough MP Andrew Pakes has thanked the community of Peterborough after hate was rejected in favour of peaceful demonstrations on Wednesday (August 7).
There had been fears that an advertised far-right rally would take place- mirroring ugly scenes seen in some areas of the country on Lincoln Road, however, no protesters showed up and instead, a large number of counter protesters arrived to hold a peaceful protest.
In response, Peterborough MP Andrew Pakes has written to community representatives, faith leaders, police and the council to say thank you for their work in recent days to keep us all safe.
The letter reads: “This has been a difficult week for the country and many of our communities following unrest and violence we have seen in some parts of the country.
“I am so proud that Peterborough has stood together to reject hate. As a city, we know how to look out for each other.
“Our places of worship- regardless of faith- are special places, our streets are our home, our city is our community.
“I am extremely grateful to our policing colleagues, council workers, faith leaders and community representatives for working tirelessly over this last week to keep us all safe. I want to put on record my thanks to the police and other frontline workers for stepping up neighbourhood patrols in recent days.
“The call to prayer by our Muslim Faith communities last night demonstrated that Peterborough rejects extremism in our city and that we all stand united against hate. Good community relations matter in Peterborough, and we will keep working to ensure our communities are protected and safe.
“I know from talking to many people, that anxiety remains high. We need to speak as one voice to say that racism, islamaphobia and violence are not welcome here and I will continue to support our community representatives, faith leaders and the authorities to make sure we remain a safe and peaceful city.
“The government has been clear that this disgraceful criminality will not be tolerated, and that those who are seeking to stoke disorder and division in our communities will face the full force of the law.”