A FASCIST protest in Elgin this weekend will be opposed with solidarity from a community who “will not be divided by hatred,” campaigners vowed yesterday.

Hitler impersonator Alek Yerbury, along with his fascist National Support Detachment (NSD), plans to make the long journey with his followers to the unlikely setting of a Morayshire town 117 miles north of Edinburgh.

The NSD’s action follows a familiar fascist pattern, from Erskine to Knowsley, of seeking out areas where refugees have been placed in order to spread their message of hate.

The neonazi protest has united local SNP MSP Richard Lochhead and local MP and Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross in condemnation.

Mr Lochhead told the Star: “I know people here to be inclusive and welcoming, and they will have no time for any extremist groups trying to stir up hate in our local community.”

The newly reconvened Moray Trades Council (MTUC), alongside Stand Up to Racism, the STUC and Pax Christi Scotland, are organising a solidarity vigil on the town’s Plainstones (market square) this Saturday at noon.

A MTUC spokesperson said: “We want to give the people of Elgin and surrounding areas an opportunity to visibly reject this fascist gathering, and show that we are a diverse, welcoming community who will not be divided by hatred.

“We will be showing solidarity with asylum-seekers recently arrived in Moray, and will make clear that racism and hatred have no place in our community.

“Moray is our local area, and we welcome everyone except folk who come here to cause trouble and sow division.”