Thousands gathered along the Cairns Esplanade on Sunday for the ‘March for Australia’ protests

While neo-Nazi groups disrupted similar rallies across Australia, Cairns families turned out in their thousands for an orderly immigration protest.

Thousands gathered along the Cairns Esplanade on Sunday for the ‘March for Australia’ protests, chanting “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie,” waving Australian flags, and carrying homemade signs.

Families joined the crowd, with children in prams and even dogs along for the walk, as protesters moved from Muddy’s Café to Rusty’s Markets before looping back through Fogarty Park.

Homemade signs and Australian flags were on display at the March for Australia event in Cairns. Picture: Brendan Radke

The march began around midday on August 31 and stood in stark contrast to similar rallies held elsewhere in the country. Attendees told The Cairns Post there was no single person behind the event, with numbers driven by word of mouth and Facebook posts.

Locals join the nationwide March for Australia, calling for immigration changes. Picture: Brendan Radke

Barry Jones and his Red Kelpie dog Barney were two of thousands of Far North Queensland residents march down the Cairns Esplanade and along city streets for the March For Australia protest and rally, taking a stance against the Australian Government's immigration policies. Picture: Brendan Radke

While the Cairns rally remained calm and orderly, reports from other states painted a different picture. In Sydney, neo-Nazi groups were seen handing out flyers and chanting “Heil Australia,” while in Melbourne, a brawl erupted, forcing police to intervene and break up fights.

For Cairns local Ted, who declined to provide a last name, has lived in the region for 20 years, the day was about making his voice heard on immigration numbers.

Protesters say the rally is about reducing immigration and putting Australians first. Traffic in the CBD came to a standstill as protesters traversed city blocks. Picture: Brendan Radke

“I support immigration, but there’s just too many migrants of different cultures coming into Australia and changing our culture — not Australian culture anymore,” he said.

Ted stressed he wasn’t against immigration entirely, but believed the scale of recent arrivals was excessive.

Unlike marches in other cities, the Cairns rally remained peaceful and family-friendly. Queensland Police officers observed the protestors along the route. Picture: Brendan Radke

“Of course, you’ve got to have immigration in Australia, but to go as far as they did — bringing in 1.2 to 3 million people in a couple of years — was over the top,” he said.

“It’s really, really silly nonsense. Whoever was in charge of that, they really need to be got rid of because that’s destroying Australia as we know it.”

He also raised concerns about housing pressure and what he claimed were fraudulent qualifications among some migrants.

Families, pets, and Aussie flags fill the Esplanade during Sunday’s march. Picture: Brendan Radke

“It goes directly to things like housing — people coming in saying they’ve got qualifications to be builders or electricians, and they haven’t got the qualifications,” Ted said.

The 79-year-old said most people he spoke to at the march on Sunday shared similar views.

“You can virtually say 90 per cent of the people in the march today would agree with me,” he said.

Originally published as Thousands gathered along the Cairns Esplanade on Sunday for the ‘March for Australia’ protests