Hundreds protest on the advent of Trump becoming US president

Campaigners in Edinburgh have joined hundreds across the world to protest against Donald Trump’s inauguration.

The action, one of more than 100 planned in villages, towns and cities across the country, is part of the Bridges not Walls project, a partnership between grassroots activists and campaigners working on a diverse range of issues, formed in the wake of Donald Trump's election.

Campaigners droped banners from the city’s North Bridge in Edinburgh at 9:00am today (Friday 20th) with slogans like ‘Women Rise Up,’ “Migrants Welcome Here,” “There is No Planet B” and “Bridges Not Walls”.

Edinburgh Bridges Not Walls spokesperson Alys Mumford said: “On Trump's inauguration day we’re taking action to show our support for groups under attack - here in Scotland and the UK, across Europe and in the USA - and to reject the rise of a dangerous and divisive far right politics.

“The new normal that the far right is seeking will roll back decades of progress on civil rights, gender equality and the environment. It is up to all of us to take responsibility for actively rejecting this.

"Bridges Not Walls is about making a public commitment to fighting a politics of hate and bigotry at all levels, including the everyday.”

Edinburgh Bridges not Walls spokesperson Talat Yaqoob added that the rise of the far right on both sides of the Atlantic threatened democracy and the fabric of society.

“It’s vital that we all stand together, and right now that means actively defending the rights of our most vulnerable people and communities - muslims, immigrants, people of colour, disabled people, women and LGBT.”

The newly elected US president will be sworn into office by the chief justice of the United States today at 5pm GMT.