WEB DESK

Tens of thousands of citizens rallied against the far-right League party in Florence. The protest is the latest in a series of demonstrations called by the new, youth-driven “Sardine Movement”.

The sardine has become a symbol of protest against the far-right firebrand leader Matteo Salvini, who served as Interior Minister and Deputy Prime Minister in the previous coalition government with the Five Star Movement.

Students, young professionals and families with children joined the march.

A protest against Salvini’s party drew an estimated 12,000-15,000 people in Bologna last week. During the protests in Bologna’s main square, the group squeezed together in the rain “like sardines”, giving the movement its name. Demonstrators gathered in the protest sang the anti-fascist song “Bella Ciao”.

Instead of the usual banners from political groups, protesters brandished placards in the shape of a sardine.

The new movement has staged 10 demonstrations over the past 15 days in the north of the country.