Following the Sept. 10, 2025, fatal shooting of conservative American activist Charlie Kirk, a rumor spread online that over a million people marched in London to honor the Turning Point USA CEO and co-founder.
The claim spread on X and Facebook; many posts said the Britons gathered to mourn Kirk and "protest mass third world migration."
These posts need context. While a mass protest in London did happen on Sept. 13, 2025, shortly after Kirk's death, far-right activist Stephen Yaxley-Lennon — better known as Tommy Robinson — organized the "unite the kingdom" rally months before the fatal shooting occurred. Robinson, known for anti-immigrant and anti-Muslim views, billed it as a campaign to "defend free speech," but it was accurate to say that the rally included protesting against immigration. Police also estimated a far smaller turnout than the posts above alleged.
Given that Robinson did not organize the rally specifically for Kirk, but he still advertised it as a way to honor Kirk — and many protesters did — we have rated this claim a mixture of truth and falsehood.
A search on Robinson's X account for "September 13" found posts as early as May 2025 advertising the rally.
"They thought we would back down," Robinson wrote in a May 29 X post, for example, in a quote post including a clip of a previous "unite the kingdom" rally. "We want our country back. September 13th London be there."
Pictures on Getty Images, a reputable photojournalism database, showed various anti-immigrant messaging present at the march, including a sign that said "DEPORT ALL ILLEGALS." Another poster alleged: "Immigration is driving the UK's biggest problems." Other images also showed pictures of Kirk on signs and stickers at the rally.
Robinson claimed that "3 million patriots" attended the rally, and many posts said more than a million showed up. But Metropolitan Police estimated attendance at "between 110,000 to 150,000" — still "significantly exceeding the estimates of organisers," per a news release about violence directed at law enforcement during the rally.
According to the Sept. 13 release, the protest saw "disorder, violence directed at officers and 26 officers injured." Law enforcement arrested at least 25 people on charges including assault and criminal damage. Robinson, a convicted fraudster with a history of violent criminal convictions, has previously organized protests that have turned violent.
We have also investigated other purported tributes for Kirk, including an AI-generated song about Kirk falsely attributed to singer Ed Sheeran and a fabricated story about singer Paul McCartney honoring Kirk during a London concert.