Hundreds of people have taken to the streets of Cessnock to protest against a proposed mosque at Buchanan.
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More than 700 people marched along Vincent Street on Sunday morning chanting “no more mosque” as part of a rally organised by Reclaim Australia, before they gathered at Civic Park and listened to arguments against the proposed development.
Meanwhile, a group of about 150 people stood in the Cessnock Performing Arts Centre car park, only a few hundred metres away, and protested against the Reclaim Australia’s march.
Some who spoke at the Reclaim Australia rally insisted the group did not condone violence.
But a speaker who identified himself as a Christian Democratic Party representative told the crowd: “We need to stop building mosques, but if it keeps going maybe we need to push a few over and bulldoze them.”
In between chants of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie, oi, oi, oi”, some individuals yelled comments including “say no to Islam” and “there’ll be an Islamic caliphate here within the next five years if this mosque goes ahead”.