A Stand in the Park: Inside ‘freedom’ group flaunting restrictions

With thousands around the world joining their cause, a former salesman has been able to assemble an army of conspiracy theorists who believe Covid “is a lie” and tin foil wrap their phones at rallies.

A conspiracy group promoting the breaching of coronavirus restrictions in the name of “freedom” has built a global army of anti-vaccine and anti-mask followers all from the humble home of a man from Port Macquarie.

The group – A Stand in the Park – were one of several promoting the Sydney rally a month ahead of time and vow to protest in local parks across Australia “every Sunday” in defiance of the lockdown.

The group’s founder Brady Gunn, a former sound system salesman, has amassed thousands of followers on social media where it spreads misinformation about the pandemic freely.

The group’s controversial beliefs were on show at Camperdown’s Memorial Rest Park on Sunday where one member – donning yellow for “freedom” – was pictured attempting to rally while covering her phone in tin foil.

A Stand in the Park" protester in Newtown at the weekend, who reportedly filmed police and wrapped her phone in tin foil. Picture: Riso Winterbored

The woman was reportedly moved on after police from the Inner West Command swarmed in huge numbers across the park in a bid to stamp out any protest activity.

Brady Gunn himself has been temporarily banned from accessing the group’s social media channels as part of his bail conditions he agreed to after facing court at the weekend charged with breaching coronavirus restrictions, including refusing a police direction.

Police allege he travelled by train into Oatlands on Saturday and wasn’t wearing a mask on public transport, as well as breaching a public safety order he had to abide by.

Since last year, the group’s Facebook page has grown to 16,000 followers, with thousands more across several Instagram accounts and a private group with 40,000 people.

Brady Gunn, founder of Sydney 'freedom' group A Stand in the Park, the Sydney CBD rally in July.

So big has their reach grown that it has launched a “branch” in the UK which has been leading anti-lockdown protests since last year.

“I started posting about this about 18 months ago and it was a very lonely place back then,” Mr Gunn said in one post recently.

Just how the group managed to go from one man in Port Macquarie to wielding an army of influential anti-vaxxers across the world has largely gone under the radar.

On Instagram, the group boasts of 65,000 members across the world and posts memes and videos including one recently of Mr Gunn refusing to accept a Covid-related fine from police in Hyde Park.

One of the images the group shared showing its London members fighting against masks, vaccines and lockdowns.

Mr Gunn, according to the group’s page, began standing in the park alone a year ago to fight for “his truth” but banners, flags and T-shirts donning their yellow logo can be seen around the world at anti-lockdown events.

Most recently clips have emerged of large groups in London, where the virus has had a deadly impact on the population.

Social media giants have allowed the misinformation to thrive for almost a year on the pages where each post is being shared hundreds of times.

The group have managed to spruik views on mainstream platforms like YouTube and Facebook working with other conspiracy theorists on podcasts to continue to spread their ideas in plain sight.

One of the memes A Stand in the Park posted to Instagram recently.

On Instagram, the group boasts of 65,000 members across the world.

“But there is no public health emergency, as soon as you start pulling on one card in the house of cards that whole thing just tumbles down,” Mr Gunn told his followers recently.

“Anyone, a 12 month old, anyone with hands can do a test to see that masks don’t work.”

He has also called coronavirus “the biggest lie the world has ever seen” in another video.

Since his arrest on Saturday hundreds of followers have been sending messages of support and claim his charges were “unlawful”.

Mr Gunn was previously an iPod docking station salesman in Newtown and claims to run another business he describes as a charity.