- John Francis led an anti-immigration march in Hull, later admitting poor word choice
- He apologized for violence at the rally but denied racism, blaming hijackers
- Post-rally, Francis met with mosque worshipper Jamil, discussing community tensions
John Francis, the founder of Hull Patriotic Protesters, staged the anti-illegal immigration march in the aftermath of a knife attack in Southport that killed three young girls.
The leader of a Hull rally that resulted in racist violence has admitted that referring to minor boat migrants as “an influx of illegal invaders” was not “the best choice of words”.
However, he claimed that his march had been hijacked and denied racism.
In a conversation with a worshipper from the attacked mosque, John Francis apologised for what had occurred.
Mr Jamil has lived and worked in Hull for 24 years after arriving as an asylum seeker from Iraq.
On August 3, he was inside a mosque when a rowdy mob attacked it, throwing items such as stones at it.
Mr Francis, who relocated to Hull from London and has lived there for many years, is the founder of the Hull Patriotic Protesters, who arranged a rally in the city.
He informed Mr Jamil that his protest had been planned for “about three weeks” and that “illegal immigration” was his primary concern.
Following the killings of three children in Southport, he decided “to use the opportunity to turn it into a vigil to remember the young girls”.
Mr Jamil addressed him, asking if he was aware that the suspect in the Southport murders was born in Wales.
Mr. Francis responded, “I never jumped on any of that.”
Mr Francis is wearing a T-shirt with the words “Stop The Boats” in a rally video.
When discussing immigration, he shouts over a microphone, “Do one, I don’t want you here.”
Before the protest, Mr Francis wrote a social media advertisement urging people to arrive “as sober as you can be” and claiming that “at the start of the demo we will be holding a tribute and a short vigil for little girls who lost their lives at the hands of a scumbag.”
It includes a list of items the organisation is “fed up” with, such as “terror attacks on our people in the name of an alien religion to our country”.
During the unrest that ensued after the scheduled demonstration, a migrant hotel was attacked, and cars and tyres were set on fire before the mob proceeded to the mosque.
Mr Francis claims he began to get “vibes” that a large number of people would attend his demonstration in the days leading up to it. He received a call from the police asking him to reconsider cancelling, but he refused.
He admits he was a now-defunct English Defence League member but claims he left years before it folded.
When asked about the description of the Hull Patriotic Protesters on its Facebook site, which defines one of the group’s issues as “the influx of illegal invaders,” Mr Francis said: “When I started that group up, there was a lot of rubbish coming out of parliament about an ‘invasion’.
“Forget the politicians who said that; everyone called it an invasion. Now that I think about it, it was not the finest choice of words.
However, he stressed the importance of fairness. In every single one of my posts, I always declare ‘black, brown, and white unite’; yes, I dislike racism. I don’t like Nazis, and I don’t want bloodshed or riots. “I always say that.”
Mr Jamil told Mr Franics that whether he intended to or not, the messages in his posts “kind of trigger things for other people”.
He stated that some people would interpret his statements as “let’s go attack them”.
Mr Jamil stated that he is “still worried about going into the city centre” since the Hull incident, adding, “I still feel uncomfortable going to town, going to shopping centres, going to public places.
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Mr Francis explained why he holds rallies, saying, “What we’re seeing is people coming over on these boats.”
“This is what people are being told: they’re taking up four-star hotels, they’re being rewarded, they’re being housed, fed, and clothed.
“They are not vetted. “No one knows who they are.”
Mr Jamil argued that they are not entitled to a free ride. The food and location given are not what you expected.”
He went on, “Believe me, they are struggling.”
Mr Francis raised the issue of communities not mixing, to which Mr Jamil responded, “We do mix. “I have so many English friends.”
Mr Francis also stated that he has no plans for any additional demonstrations.
“I don’t really think this city needs it at the moment,” he stated, adding, “I just think the people of this city need to rest. The people of this country need to rest.
“The prime minister of this country should consider how he addresses people.” He must do more than simply extinguish the fire. He needs to figure out why it started.
