Gardaí keep rival protest marches apart on streets of Dublin
O'Connell Bridge was closed for a time yesterday afternoon to accommodate the marches.
The United Against Racism rally began at the Central Plaza on Dame Street, marching through the city to O'Connell Bridge at around 2pm.
Several protesters carried signs saying: 'Blame the Government, not migrants',and: 'Dublin stands against racism'. They also chanted: 'Say it loud, say it clear, refugees are welcome here.'
The anti-immigration protest marched down O'Connell Street and turned left at O'Connell Bridge before continuing along the quays.
Participants from both sides shouted and gestured towards each other from across the empty space between the barriers created by gardaí.
At one point, the anti-racism rally chanted at the anti-immigration group: 'You say protect women, that's a lie' and referenced a photo being carried by one person of MMA fighter Conor McGregor, who lost a civil trial where a Dublin woman accused him of raping her in a Dublin hotel.
The anti-immigration group, which was the larger of the two, was thick with large Tricolour flags. It chanted 'ole ole' and, 'Whose streets? Our streets'.
Several people were seen wearing 'Make Ireland Great Again' green caps and holding US or 'Trump' flags, and some signs critical of RTÉ.
There was an extensive garda presence at the location where the two protest groups were due to cross paths.
One mother said she and her eight-year-old attended the anti-racism protest as there was an anti-immigration demonstration being held close to her daughter's school.
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She said the group are camped beside the primary school every day over a nearby International Protection Accommodation Service (Ipas) centre, which has been there since 2022.
'We want to just come down and show our support for all of the people who go to her school who are migrants, or who have migrant parents,' the woman said, who asked that she not be named.
'We want to pass the message over to the other side that this is unacceptable for Ireland today, especially for the youth to have to put up with this type of environment.
'It's been extremely upsetting for the children and the families.'
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