Thousands of street against racism

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of the Italian city of Macerata to demonstrate against racism.

Italians and migrants demonstrated Saturday together side by side. They carried banners in Macerata with slogans against violence and racism. Italian media reports that according to the organizers about 30,000 people participated in the demonstration. The authorities have not confirmed that.

Some demonstrators had carried red, heart-shaped balloons with the names of victims of the shooting, in which six people were injured. The shooter was allegedly furious for the death of an eighteen-year-old woman. Her body parts were found in suitcases at Macerata. The police later arrested a Nigerian suspect.

In recent years, hundreds of thousands of migrants have arrived in Italy by boat. This has led to social unrest.