Activists came together to form a ‘human chain’ on King’s Parade on Monday in solidarity with migrants in the UK and worldwide.

The event, which involved individuals linking arms in front of the entrance to King’s, was organised to show support and sympathy for migrants in the UK, in response to the government’s increasingly restrictive attitude to immigration.

The human chain was linked to ‘One Day Without Us’, a national day of action organised to celebrate the contribution of migrants to the UK and to protest against increasing hostility.

This national campaign encouraged immigrants living in the UK to ‘boycott’ whatever activities they would normally be doing on Monday in order to demonstrate their value to society and the UK’s dependence on them. Events were held all over the country, including a protest outside the Houses of Parliament, and many like the one held in Cambridge.

One Day Without Us was also intended to coincide with the UN’s ‘World Day of Social Justice’. This aims to promote awareness of global social justice issues, such as gender inequality, a lack workers’ rights and injustice, and encourage engagement with solutions to these problems. The theme this year is ‘Preventing conflict and sustaining peace through decent work’.

The protest in Cambridge was organised by Virginie Ganivet, who told Varsity that she had wanted to do something because she has “lots of friends who have been victims of hate crime” and it is “important to make a stand against it”.

Ganivet said protests like this are needed to pursue a “counter-narrative” to the current attitude to migrants, and especially refugees, in order to show that they are “regular people” and to send a message: “stop funding hate”. She cited organisations like ‘Migrants Organise’, which provides a platform for migrants and refugees to campaign for dignity and justice, as being vitally important for this.

Protests in the form of a ‘human chain’ are popular as demonstrations of political solidarity. On Monday they were organised all over the country, with One Day Without Us encouraging people to “link arms” in support of migrants.

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Former Cambridge MP Dr Julian Huppert was present at the human chain, and said of the event quite simply that “it matters”. He said that we have “a right to stand up for what we care about” and demonstrate the “huge contribution” that migrants make. Another attendee described the current situation as “appalling”, saying that it is “Britain that has caused the problem”.

The Cambridge human chain followed a protest in the city the previous day. Several individuals were invited to speak, including Huppert (who was unable to attend), Elisabeth Pope from Hope Not Hate, which describes its role as providing “a positive antidote to the politics of hate”, and Liesbeth Ten Ham from Amnesty International.

A statement from Huppert was read on his behalf at the rally. It spoke about the importance of migrants to the UK: while addressing them directly, he told them that “this country owes you better”. He said that he has always expressed his support for migration and wider liberal values. In the speech he described Cambridge as a “liberally-minded European city” and said that he does “not want any part of that to be ripped away”. He resented the “anti-foreigner, xenophobic messages you see in the press, and from some politicians” and thanked migrants, saying: “it’s been good for you and it’s been good for us”