Hundreds of people have joined a rally in Melbourne calling for a stop to racism targeting the city's African community following a spate of high-profile crimes involving street gangs.
The rally featured African leaders and politicians calling for an end to the scare campaign about "so-called African gangs" in Melbourne.
"By associating the idea of crime with ethnicity and being African, media outlets and Peter Dutton have created a hysterical climate of fear and racism, which is negatively impacting many people in different African communities in Melbourne," organiser Jasmine Ali said ahead of the rally.
Many far-right groups were encouraged to target members of different African communities, Ms Ali said.
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A series of home invasions, armed robberies, assaults and attacks on police linked to offenders of African appearance have sparked intense media and political scrutiny.
